Abstract
Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is the most common chronic liver disorder. Stress promotes the onset of the NAFLD with a concomitant increment in the activity of the hepatic 11β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase type 1 (11β-HSD-1). However, the interaction between the stress and a carbohydrate-enriched diet for the development of NAFLD in young animals is unknown. In the present study, we evaluated the impact of chronic stress on the hepatic triacylglycerol level of young rats fed or not with a high sucrose-diet. For doing this, 21-day old male Wistar rats were allocated into 4 groups: control (C), chronic restraint stress (St), high-sucrose diet (S30), and chronic restraint stress plus a 30 % sucrose diet (St + S30). Chronic restraint stress consisted of 1-hour daily session, 5 days per week and for 4 weeks. Rats were fed with a standard chow and tap water (C group) or 30 % sucrose diluted in water (S30 group). The St + S30 groups consumed less solid food but had an elevated visceral fat accumulation in comparison with the St group. The St group showed a high level of serum corticosterone and a high activity of the hepatic 11β-HSD-1 concomitantly to the augmentation of hepatic steatosis signs, a high hepatic triacylglycerol content, and hepatic oxidative stress. Conversely, the high-sucrose intake in stressed rats (St + S30 group) reduced the hepatic 11β-HSD-1 activity, the level of serum corticosterone, and the hepatic triacylglycerol content. Present findings show that a high-sucrose diet ameliorates the triacylglycerol accumulation in liver promoted by the restraint stress in young male rats.
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Abbreviations
- H–E:
-
Hematoxylin and eosin
- HPA:
-
Hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis
- 11β-HSD-1:
-
11β-Hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase type 1
- MCP-1:
-
Monocyte chemoattractant protein-1
- NAFLD:
-
Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease
- NAS:
-
Non-alcoholic steatosis activity scores
- NADPH:
-
Nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate
- 3-NTyr:
-
3-Nitrotyrosine
- PBS:
-
Phosphate-buffered saline
- TAG:
-
Triacylglycerol
- TNFα:
-
Tumor necrosis factor alpha
- VLDL:
-
Very low density lipoprotein
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Acknowledgments
This study was supported by the Consejo Nacional de Ciencia y Tecnología as a pre-doctoral fellowship (Reg. 417844) to ACP, PNPC C-122/2014, and 225126 Apoyo de Infraestructura al Cuerpo Académico Fisiología del Comportamiento, UATx). The authors are grateful for the expert technical assistance of Laura García, and Alvaro Muñoz for the critical review of our manuscript.
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Corona-Pérez, A., Díaz-Muñoz, M., Rodríguez, I.S. et al. High Sucrose Intake Ameliorates the Accumulation of Hepatic Triacylglycerol Promoted by Restraint Stress in Young Rats. Lipids 50, 1103–1113 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11745-015-4066-0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11745-015-4066-0