6,461 research outputs found
Reduced sensitivity of fa/fa Zucker rats to adrenomedullin
Rat adrenomedullin is a peptide vasodepressor that may be of importance in the pathogenesis of hypertensive disease. Because of the known link between obesity and hypertension, we hypothesized that decreased responsiveness to adrenomedullin might be seen in an obese rodent model. In this study, the in vivo vasodilator actions of exogenous adrenomedullin were compared in anesthetized lean (n = 7) and obese (fa/fa) Zucker rats (n = 8). Adrenomedullin dose dependently lowered mean arterial pressure in both phenotypes, but the half-maximal dose (ID50) was 2-fold higher in fa/fa rats (1.7 +/- 0.22 vs. 0.83 +/- 0.06 nmol/kg). Moreover, the duration of effect was markedly reduced in the fa/fa rats, to 1-2 min from about 5 min in the lean animals. There was no evidence for an increased rate of degradation of adrenomedullin in the fa/fa rats. Although the rats used in this study were not hypertensive, adrenomedullin had reduced sensitivity and duration of action. The evidence suggests possible defects at the target receptor or altered metabolism of adrenomedullin in obesity.LR: 20061115; PUBM: Print; JID: 0372712; 0 (Peptides); 0 (Vasodilator Agents); 148498-78-6 (Adrenomedullin); ppublishSource type: Electronic(1
Identification of biochemical defects in pancreatic islets of fa/fa rats: a developmental study
Adult obese (fa/fa) Zucker rats hypersecrete insulin in response to glucose and other secretagogues. Functional changes in islet alpha 2-adrenoceptors (8) and glycolytic regulation (9) have been reported. In this study, the development of these biochemical lesions in islets isolated from suckling (3 week old) and weanling (5 week old) lean and fa/fa rats was investigated and compared to results in adult animals. Glucose (15 mM)-induced insulin secretion was inhibited by mannoheptulose (MH) in lean (n = 8) but not fa/fa (n = 10) adult rats, indicating loss of sensitivity of glucokinase to competitive inhibition. Sensitivity to MH was somewhat reduced in the islets of 3- and 5-week-old fa/fa (n = 7 and 12) compared to lean (n = 15 and 9) rats, requiring 30-100 fold higher concentrations to achieve significant inhibition. At 3 weeks of age fa/fa rats did not differ from lean controls in either islet insulin content or body weight, but both parameters were increased in fa/fa rats by 5 weeks. The presence of altered alpha 2-adrenoceptor function in fa/fa rats could not be confirmed in this study. Unlike the previous report, prazosin did not antagonize alpha 2-agonist mediated inhibition of insulin secretion. The presence of defective regulation of the glycolytic pathway by mannoheptulose in suckling and weanling rats may contribute to development of hyperinsulinemia in fa/fa rats.LR: 20061115; PUBM: Print; JID: 9305691; 0 (Receptors, Adrenergic, alpha); 11061-68-0 (Insulin); 50-99-7 (Glucose); 654-29-5 (Mannoheptulose); EC 2.7.1.2 (Glucokinase); ppublishSource type: Electronic(1
Effect of adrenalectomy on the development of a pancreatic islet lesion in fa/fa rats
Adrenalectomy prevents development of obesity and hyperinsulinaemia in obese (fa/fa) Zucker rats, thereby implicating the hypothalamo- pituitary-adrenal axis in the pathogenesis of obesity. In this study glucose-induced insulin secretion and glucokinase activity were investigated in isolated islets from adrenalectomized and control obese and lean female rats. Islets from control fa/fa rats were more sensitive to glucose with a half-maximal effective concentration (EC50) of 6.1 +/- 2.0 mmol. 1(-1) compared with 10.6 +/- 2.7 mmol. 1(-1) for adrenalectomized fa/fa rat islets. Adrenalectomy did not alter the islet sensitivity to glucose in the lean rats (EC50 of 9.4 +/- 1.5 mmol.1(-1) and 9.3 +/- 2.0 mmol. 1(-1) for adrenalectomized and control lean rats respectively). Mannoheptulose did not inhibit insulin secretion from control obese rats; however at concentrations of 1.0 mmol. 1(-1) or more it significantly inhibited glucose-induced insulin secretion in adrenalectomized obese and lean, and control lean rat islets (P < 0.05). In adrenalectomized fa/fa islets the glucokinase Km was increased twofold compared with the control fa/fa rats (9.5 +/- 1.5 mmol. 1(-1) vs 5.0 +/- 1.5 mmol. 1(-1), respectively), but there was no significant change in glucokinase Km in the lean rat islets after adrenalectomy. Mannoheptulose (10 mmol.1(-1) caused a significant reduction in glucose phosphorylation in disrupted islets of adrenalectomized fa/fa and lean, and of control lean rats, but not of control fa/fa rats. These data demonstrate that development of abnormal regulation of glycolysis in pancreatic islet beta cells of fa/fa rats, as indicated by the insulin response to manno-heptulose and glucokinase activity, is dependent on an intact hypothalamo-pituitary-adrenal axis.LR: 20061115; PUBM: Print; JID: 0006777; 0 (Blood Glucose); 11061-68-0 (Insulin); 50-22-6 (Corticosterone); 50-99-7 (Glucose); 654-29-5 (Mannoheptulose); EC 2.7.1.1 (Hexokinase); EC 2.7.1.2 (Glucokinase); ppublishSource type: Electronic(1
Ultrastructural and secretory heterogeneity of fa/fa (Zucker) rat islets
Many previous studies of obese rodents documented biochemical changes in pancreatic islets that contribute to hyperinsulinemia in vivo. Those studies used heterogeneous populations of islets, although the size of islets from obese rats ranges from 500 microm. Here, functional and morphological changes in size-sorted ( 250 microm diameter) islets from obese Zucker (fa/fa) rats were correlated. Ultrastructural examination revealed that > 250 microm cultured islets had an increased number of immature secretory granules in the beta cells. The number of degranulated beta cells in > 250 and 250 microm, 250 microm islets compared with small islets. Studies of individual beta cells by reverse hemolytic plaque assay revealed 3-fold more cells from > 250 microm islets were stimulated by 1.4 mmol.l(-1) glucose than cells from < 125 microm islets. We conclude that functional defects in mixed size populations of islets from fa/fa rats are mainly due to alterations in the large islets, whereas smaller islets have relatively normal function. Exposure to high glucose exacerbates morphological and functional differences of large islets, which could have important implications in the transition to noninsulin-dependent diabetes when beta cell insulin production is unable to compensate for hyperglycemia.LR: 20061115; PUBM: Print; JID: 7500844; 11061-68-0 (Insulin); 50-99-7 (Glucose); 654-29-5 (Mannoheptulose); 7782-44-7 (Oxygen); ppublishSource type: Electronic(1
Evidence for defective glucose sensing by islets of fa/fa obese Zucker rats
The hypothesis that a defect in glucose sensing by islets of fa/fa Zucker rats contributes to hyperinsulinemia in these animals was tested. Islets from lean and fa/fa rats were isolated by collagenase digestion and step-density gradient purification and then cultured overnight in Dulbecco's modified Eagle's medium containing 12.5 mM glucose. Obese rat islets were more sensitive to hypoglycemic glucose levels with half-maximal effective concentration (EC50) of 5.6 mM compared with an EC50 of 8.2 mM for lean rat islets. In contrast, responsiveness of both phenotypes to alpha-ketoisocaproate and quinine was similar. Mannoheptulose did not inhibit insulin secretion from fa/fa islets, although inhibitors of later events in the stimulus-secretion coupling pathway were normally inhibited by iodoacetate and diazoxide. Finally, starvation in vivo and culture of islets in low glucose concentrations (5 mM) in vitro both decreased glucose-stimulated insulin secretion from lean but not fa/fa rat islets. We conclude that fa/fa rat islets have an exaggerated insulin response to hypoglycemic stimuli, possibly as a result of a defect in B-cell glucokinase function.LR: 20061115; PUBM: Print; JID: 0372712; 0 (Amino Acids); 0 (Blood Glucose); 0 (Iodoacetates); 11061-68-0 (Insulin); 130-95-0 (Quinine); 364-98-7 (Diazoxide); 50-99-7 (Glucose); 56-65-5 (Adenosine Triphosphate); 64-69-7 (Iodoacetic Acid); 654-29-5 (Mannoheptulose); EC 2.7.1.2 (Glucokinase); ppublishSource type: Electronic(1
Functional characterization of alpha-adrenoceptors on pancreatic islets of fa/fa Zucker rats
Recently, a defect in pertussis toxin-independent actions of epinephrine on pancreatic B-cells of fa/fa Zucker rats was reported (Cawthorn and Chan (1991) Mol. Cell. Endocrinol. 75, 197-204). We now report studies of islet alpha 2-adrenoceptor function of fa/fa rats. Insulin and cAMP production by islets of obese rats were both inhibited by the alpha 2-adrenoceptor agonist clonidine. Calculated pD2 values for clonidine were 9.57 +/- 0.59 and 9.43 +/- 0.33 for lean and fa/fa rat islets, respectively. Yohimbine reversed clonidine effects equipotently in lean and obese rat islets (pA2 values of 7.48 +/- 0.57 vs 7.43 +/- 0.58). Unexpectedly, the alpha 1-antagonist prazosin stimulated insulin secretion from islets of obese but not lean rats. Functional characteristics of the alpha-adrenoceptors on fa/fa islets are thus similar to those recently designated alpha 2B. Altered expression of alpha-adrenoceptors on pancreatic islets of fa/fa rats may contribute to changes in the pertussis toxin-independent pathway of epinephrine action previously observed.LR: 20061115; PUBM: Print; JID: 7500844; 0 (Receptors, Adrenergic, alpha); 11061-68-0 (Insulin); 146-48-5 (Yohimbine); 19216-56-9 (Prazosin); 4205-90-7 (Clonidine); 50-99-7 (Glucose); 51-43-4 (Epinephrine); 60-92-4 (Cyclic AMP); 66428-89-5 (Forskolin); ppublishSource type: Electronic(1
Glucose refractoriness of beta-cells from fed fa/fa rats is ameliorated by nonesterified fatty acids
The aim of this study was to characterize the glucose responsiveness of individual beta-cells from fa/fa rats under ad libitum feeding conditions. Enlarged intact islets from fed fa/fa rats had a compressed insulin response curve to glucose compared with smaller islets. Size-sorted islets from obese rats yielded beta-cells whose glucose responsiveness was assessed by reverse hemolytic plaque assay to determine whether glucose refractoriness was caused by a decreased number of responsive cells or output per cell. In addition, the effects of palmitic acid on glucose-stimulated insulin secretion were assessed because of evidence that nonesterified fatty acids have acute beneficial effects. Two- to threefold more beta-cells from >250 microm diameter (large) islets than 10-fold increase in recruitment of active cells from small islets, compared with only a 2.6-fold increase in large islets. This refractoriness was partially reversed by preincubation of the cells in low glucose for 2 h. In addition, secretion per cell of the large islet beta-cell population was significantly reduced compared with lean beta-cells, so that the overall response capacity of large but not small islet beta-cells was significantly reduced at high glucose. Therefore, continued near-normal function of the beta-cells from small islets of fa/fa rats seems crucial for glucose responsiveness. Incubation of beta-cells from large islets with palmitic acid normalized the secretory capacity to glucose mainly by increasing recruitment and secondarily by increasing secretion per cell. In conclusion, these studies demonstrate refractoriness to glucose of beta-cells from large islets of fa/fa rats under ad libitum feeding conditions. When acutely exposed to nonesterified fatty acids, islets from fa/fa rats have a potentiated insulin response despite chronic elevation of plasma lipids in vivo.LR: 20061115; PUBM: Print; JID: 0372712; 0 (Fatty Acids, Nonesterified); 0 (Lipids); 11061-68-0 (Insulin); 50-99-7 (Glucose); 57-10-3 (Palmitic Acid); ppublishSource type: Electronic(1
Glucokinase activity in isolated islets from obese fa/fa Zucker rats
Glucokinase (EC 2.7.1.2) activity of B-cells was measured in extracted pancreatic islets isolated from lean and obese fa/fa Zucker rats and maintained in primary culture overnight. Formation of [14C]glucose phosphoric esters from D-[U-14C]glucose was measured in the presence of unlabelled glucose from 0.05 to 0.50 mM for hexokinase (EC 2.7.1.1) activity, and 8.0-16.0 mM unlabelled glucose for glucokinase activity. Eadie-Hofstee analysis revealed that hexokinase kinetic parameters (Vmax and Km) for [14C]glucose phosphoric ester formation were similar in lean- and fa/fa-rat islets. For glucokinase, there was no difference in Vmax. between phenotypes. A non-significant tendency to increased sensitivity to glucose was noted in the fa/fa-rat islets (P = 0.13). In lean-rat islets, the glucokinase inhibitor mannoheptulose (3 mM) decreased Vmax. by 80% and increased the apparent Km from 3.3 +/- 0.7 mM to 12.2 +/- 2.0 mM (P < 0.05). There was no difference in Km or Vmax. in mannoheptulose-treated versus control islets from fa/fa rats. This lack of effect was consistent with reported effects of mannoheptulose on insulin secretion from fa/fa-rat islets [Chan, MacPhail and Mitton (1993) Can. J. Physiol. Pharmacol. 71, 34-39]. The data from glucose and mannoheptulose experiments support the hypothesis that glucokinase function is altered in fa/fa Zucker rats and may contribute to fasting hyperinsulinaemia in vivo in these animals.LR: 20061115; PUBM: Print; JID: 2984726R; 11061-68-0 (Insulin); 654-29-5 (Mannoheptulose); EC 2.7.1.1 (Hexokinase); EC 2.7.1.2 (Glucokinase); ppublishSource type: Electronic(1
KATP channel-dependent and -independent pathways of insulin secretion in isolated islets from fa/fa Zucker rats
We hypothesized that altered insulin secretory patterns in obese (fa/fa) Zucker rats might be caused by changes in downstream stimulus-secretion coupling events, such as ATP-dependent potassium (KATP) channel activity. The functions of KATP-dependent and -independent pathways of insulin secretion were therefore compared in lean and fa/fa Zucker rat isolated islets. KATP channel function was normal in fa/fa rat islets, as assessed by responsiveness to direct channel inactivators glybenclamide and quinine and by the receptor-mediated response to epinephrine and somatostatin. Altered sensitivity to glucose and mannoheptulose were explained by upstream alterations in glucose metabolism documented earlier. Despite normal inactivation of KATP channels by ATP depletion of fa/fa rat islets, glucose-stimulated insulin secretion was not inhibited, leading to studies of a putative KATP-independent pathway. When islets were depolarized by incubating with 30 mM potassium and 0.25 mM diazoxide to bypass KATP channels, glucose elicited a concentration-dependent response in both phenotypes. This response required glucose metabolism and Ca2+, as proven by experiments with nonmetabolizable glucose analogs and calcium chelation, but was only partially inhibited by a glycolytic inhibitor. Intermediates or products of oxidative metabolism are likely involved because alpha-ketoisocaproate also elicited a KATP-independent insulin response. The pattern of responses was similar in lean and fa/fa rat islets, indicating that neither of these pathways explains the insulin secretion by fa/fa rat islets depleted of ATP. In conclusion, phenotype-related differences in KATP channel function were consistent with upstream changes in glucose metabolism in fa/fa rat islets. Further studies are required to understand the basis of insulin secretion in ATP-depleted islets from fa/fa rats.LR: 20061115; PUBM: Print; JID: 8606068; 0 (Potassium Channels); 11061-68-0 (Insulin); 364-98-7 (Diazoxide); 50-99-7 (Glucose); 56-65-5 (Adenosine Triphosphate); 654-29-5 (Mannoheptulose); 7440-17-7 (Rubidium); ppublishSource type: Electronic(1
The effects of high-fat diet on exercise-induced changes in metabolic parameters in Zucker fa/fa rats
The objectives of this study were to document the effects of moderate aerobic exercise on insulin secretion and other metabolic indices in fa/fa rats and to determine if a high-fat (HF) diet altered these effects. Six-week-old fa/fa and lean Zucker rats were either sedentary or exercised by daily swimming for 4 weeks. Half of the exercised and sedentary rats were fed a diet with 16% fat and 44% carbohydrate, while the control groups were fed a diet with 4.5% fat and 49% carbohydrate. At the end of 4 weeks, caloric intake, weight gain, plasma hormone and nutrient levels, and oral glucose tolerance were measured. The pancreatic islet beta-cell function was assessed by measuring glucose-stimulated insulin secretion, glucose phosphorylating activity, and free fatty acid (FFA) oxidation in cultured islets. In fa/fa rats fed the control diet, exercise reduced weight gain, caloric intake, and fasting plasma triglyceride (TG) concentrations without affecting fasting glucose and insulin concentrations. HF diet blocked the effects of exercise on weight gain and food intake and worsened insulin resistance of fa/fa rats. In vitro, neither exercise nor HF diet alone affected islet beta-cell function. However, in combination, exercise and high dietary fat reduced glucokinase sensitivity to glucose and increased islet cell response to mannoheptulose inhibitory actions. We conclude that beneficial effects of moderate exercise on metabolism are not mediated by effects on pancreatic beta cells. Diets elevated in fat decrease the beneficial effects of exercise on metabolic indices in vivo.LR: 20061115; PUBM: Print; CI: Copyright 2002; JID: 0375267; 0 (Blood Glucose); 0 (Dietary Fats); 0 (Fatty Acids, Nonesterified); 0 (Triglycerides); 11061-68-0 (Insulin); 50-22-6 (Corticosterone); 654-29-5 (Mannoheptulose); ppublishSource type: Electronic(1
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