Maternal obesity regulates gene expression in the hearts of offspring

Effects of maternal taurine supplementation on maternal dietary intake, plasma metabolites and fetal growth and development in cafeteria diet fed rats

BACKGROUND

Maternal obesity may disrupt the developmental process of the fetus during gestation in rats. Recent evidence suggests that taurine can exert protective role against detrimental influence of obesogenic diets. This study aimed to examine the effect of maternal cafeteria diet and/or taurine supplementation on maternal dietary intake, plasma metabolites, fetal growth and development.

METHODS

Female Wistar rats were fed a control diet (CON), CON supplemented with 1.5% taurine in drinking water (CONT), cafeteria diet (CAF) or CAF supplemented with taurine (CAFT) from weaning. After 8 weeks all animals were mated and maintained on the same diets during pregnancy and lactation.

RESULTS

Dietary intakes were significantly different between the groups. Both CAF and CAFT fed dams consumed less water in comparison to CON and CONT dams. Taurine supplementation only increased plasma taurine concentrations in CONT group. Maternal plasma adiponectin concentrations increased in CAF and CAFT fed dams compared to CON and CONT fed dams and there was no effect of taurine. Hyperleptinemia was observed in CAF fed dams but not in CAFT fed dams. Malondialdehyde was significantly increased only in CAF fed dams. Litter size, sex ratio and birth weight were similar between the groups. There was an increase in neonatal mortality in CONT group.

DISCUSSION

This study showed that maternal taurine supplementation exerted modest protective effects on cafeteria diet induced maternal obesity. The increased neonatal mortality in CONT neonates indicates possible detrimental effects of taurine supplementation in the setting of normal pregnancy. Therefore, future studies should investigate the optimal dose of taurine supplementation and long term potential effects on the offspring.

Aerobic Exercise Ameliorates Myocardial Inflammation, Fibrosis and Apoptosis in High-Fat-Diet Rats by Inhibiting P2X7 Purinergic Receptors

Background

High-fat-diet (HFD) is associated with chronic low-grade inflammation. P2X7 purinergic receptors (P2X7R) are key regulators of inflammasome activation. The benefits of exercise are partly attributed to its anti-inflammatory effect, but whether it regulates P2X7R expression to improve remodeling in cardiac myocytes treated by HFD is not completely clarified.

Methods

Three groups of Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats were studied: (1) control group (fed a normal chow diet), (2) HFD group, and (3) HFD+ exercise group. H9c2 myocytes were pretreated with or without A438079 (a P2X7R inhibitor) and then exposed to 200 μM palmitic acid (PA) for 24 h. The levels of mRNA and protein were measured by real-time PCR and Western blot, respectively. Masson staining and hematoxylin-eosin (HE) staining were used to identify remodeling of the heart. The concentration of IL-1β in serum or supernatants were measured by ELISA.

Results

In vivo, collagen deposition and the number of disordered cells significantly increased in the hearts of the HFD group compared to the control group. However, exercise markedly reversed these changes in the myocardium, and the same trends were observed in the expression of MMP9, collagen I and TGF-β. Notably, the expression of P2X7R, NLRP3, caspase-1 in the hearts, and serum IL-1β level were also greatly upregulated in the heart of the HFD diet rats, and all these changes were ameliorated in the HFD + EX group. As expected, exercise also reduced the number of TUNEL-positive cells, which was consistent with the caspase-3, Bax, and Bcl-2 results. Moreover, exercise reduced body weight and blood lipid concentrations in the HFD diet rats. In vitro, we observed that the hallmark of fibrosis, inflammation and apoptosis in H9c2 myocytes enhanced by PA, and the P2X7R inhibitor treatment significantly reduced the expression of the NLRP3, caspase-1, suppressed the secretion of IL-1β of H9c2 cells, inhibited collagen I, TGF-β, MMP9, Bax, caspase-3 levels and increased the expression of Bcl-2, compared with the PA group. In addition, a decrease of the number of TUNEL-positive cells used by A438079 further support that cardiomyocytes apoptosis could be inhibited.

Conclusion

Aerobic exercise reversed the cardiac remodeling via the reduction of inflammation, fibrosis and apoptosis in HFD rats, at least in part through inhibiting P2X7R expression in cardiomyocytes.

Strategies to reduce non-communicable diseases in the offspring: negative and positive in utero programming

Non-communicable diseases (NCDs) are a major problem as they are the leading cause of death and represent a substantial economic cost. The 'Developmental Origins of Health and Disease Hypothesis' proposes that adverse stimuli at different life stages can increase the predisposition to these diseases. In fact, adverse in utero programming is a major origin of these diseases due to the high malleability of embryonic development. This review provides a comprehensive analysis of the scientific literature on in utero programming and NCDs highlighting potential medical strategies to prevent these diseases based upon this programming. We fully address the concept and mechanisms involved in this programming (anatomical disruptions, epigenetic modifications and microbiota alterations). We also examine the negative role of in utero programming on the increased predisposition of NCDs in the offspring, which introduces the passive medical approach that consists of avoiding adverse stimuli including an unhealthy diet and environmental chemicals. Finally, we extensively discuss active medical approaches that target the causes of NCDs and have the potential to significantly and rapidly reduce the incidence of NCDs. These approaches can be classified as direct in utero programming modifications and personalized lifestyle pregnancy programs; they could potentially provide transgenerational NCDs protection. Active strategies against NCDs constitute a promising tool for the reduction in NCDs.

Nutrient-Sensing Biology in Mammals and Birds

Nutrient-sensing mechanisms have emerged as the fringe articulating nutritional needs with dietary choices. Carbohydrate, amino acid, fatty acid, mineral, and water-sensing receptors are highly conserved across mammals and birds, consisting of a repertoire of 22 genes known to date. In contrast, bitter receptors are highly divergent and have a high incidence of polymorphisms within and between mammals and birds and are involved in the adaptation of species to specific environments. In addition, the expression of nutrient-sensing genes outside the oral cavity seems to mediate the required decision-making dialogue between the gut and the brain by translating exogenous chemical stimuli into neuronal inputs, and vice versa, to translate the endogenous signals relevant to the nutritional status into specific appetites and the control of feed intake. The relevance of these sensors in nondigestive systems has uncovered fascinating potential as pharmacological targets relevant to respiratory and cardiovascular diseases.

Hyperlocomotion Test for Assessing Behavioral Disorders

Under- or overfeeding during pregnancy can lead to behavioral deficits in the offspring in later life. Here, we present a protocol for setting up and carrying out the hyperlocomotion test for assessing behavioral symptoms such as psychosis or mania. As an example, we use the acute rat phencyclidine-injection model which exhibits hyperlocomotion and stereotypic behaviors, resembling the positive symptoms of schizophrenia.

Head to Head Comparison of Short-Term Treatment with the NAD(+) Precursor Nicotinamide Mononucleotide (NMN) and 6 Weeks of Exercise in Obese Female Mice

Obesity is well known to be a major cause of several chronic metabolic diseases, which can be partially counteracted by exercise. This is due, in part, to an upregulation of mitochondrial activity through increased nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD⁺). Recent studies have shown that NAD⁺ levels can be increased by using the NAD⁺ precursor, nicotinamide mononucleotide (NMN) leading to the suggestion that NMN could be a useful intervention in diet related metabolic disorders. In this study we compared the metabolic, and especially mitochondrial-associated, effects of exercise and NMN in ameliorating the consequences of high-fat diet (HFD) induced obesity in mice. Sixty female 5 week old C57BL6/J mice were allocated across five groups: Chow sedentary: CS; Chow exercise: CEX; HFD sedentary: HS; HFD NMN: HNMN; HFD exercise: HEX (12/group). After 6 weeks of diet, exercise groups underwent treadmill exercise (15 m/min for 45 min), 6 days per week for 6 weeks. NMN or vehicle (500 mg/kg body weight) was injected (i.p.) daily for the last 17 days. No significant alteration in body weight was observed in response to exercise or NMN. The HFD significantly altered adiposity, glucose tolerance, plasma insulin, NADH levels and citrate synthase activity in muscle and liver. HEX and HNMN groups both showed significantly improved glucose tolerance compared to the HS group. NAD⁺ levels were increased significantly both in muscle and liver by NMN whereas exercise increased NAD⁺ only in muscle. Both NMN and exercise ameliorated the HFD-induced reduction in liver citrate synthase activity. However, exercise, but not NMN, ameliorated citrate synthase activity in muscle. Overall these data suggest that while exercise and NMN-supplementation can induce similar reversal of the glucose intolerance induced by obesity, they are associated with tissue-specific effects and differential alterations to mitochondrial function in muscle and liver.

Novel Natural Oximes and Oxime Esters with a Vibralactone Backbone from the Basidiomycete Boreostereum vibrans

A variety of novel natural products with significant bioactivities are produced by the basidiomycete Boreostereum vibrans. In the present study, we describe 16 novel natural oximes and oxime esters with a vibralactone backbone, vibralactoximes, which were isolated from the scale-up fermentation broth of B. vibrans. Their structures were determined through extensive spectroscopic analyses. These compounds represent the first oxime esters from nature. The hypothetical biosynthetic pathway of these compounds was also proposed. Seven compounds exhibited significant pancreatic lipase inhibitory activity, while ten compounds exhibited cytotoxicities against five human cancer cell lines (HL-60, SMMC-7721, A-549, MCF-7, and SW480), with IC50 values comparable with those of cisplatin.