Zinc deficiency and a high-fat diet during growth: metabolic and adipocyte alterations in rats

PAEZ DIAMELA TATIANA; MENDES GARRIDO FACUNDO; CIANCIO NICOLAS; SORIA DAMIÁN; FARIÑA GREGORIO; ÁLVAREZ JUAN; FASOLI, HÉCTOR; VALERIA ZAGO; ELESGARAY ROSANA; CANIFFI, CAROLINA; ARRANZ CRISTINA; TOMAT ANALÍA

NUTRITION METABOLISM AND CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASES

ELSEVIER SCI LTD

Lugar: Amsterdam; Año: 2023

0939-4753

Background and aims: To evaluate the effects of a high-fat diet during post-weaning growth on intermediate metabolism and retroperitoneal adipose tissue, in adult male rats exposed to adequate or deficient zinc intake during prenatal and postnatal life.Methods and results: Female Wistar rats were fed low- or control-zinc diets from pregnancy to offspring weaning. Male offspring born from control mothers were fed either control or high-fat, control-zinc diets for 60 days. Male offspring born from zinc deficient mothers were fed either low-zinc or high-fat, low-zinc diets for 60 days. At 74 days of life, oral glucose tolerance test was performed. In 81-day-old offspring, blood pressure, lipid profile, plasmatic lipid peroxidation and serum adiponectin level were determined. In retroperitoneal adipose tissue, we evaluated oxidative stress, morphology and adipocytokines mRNA expression.Low-zinc diet induced adipocytes hypertrophy, increased oxidative stress, and decreased adiponectin mRNA expression in adipose tissue. Low-zinc diet increased systolic blood pressure, triglyceridemia, plasmatic lipid peroxidation and glycemia at 3 hours after glucose overload. Animals fed high-fat or high-fat, low-zinc diets showed adipocytes hypertrophy, decreased adiponectin mRNA expression, and increased leptin mRNA expression and oxidative stress in adipose tissue. They also exhibited decreased serum adiponectin levels, increased triglyceridemia, plasmatic lipid peroxidation and area under the oral glucose tolerance curve. High-fat, low-zinc diet induced greater alterations in adipocyte hypertrophy, leptin mRNA expression and glucose tolerance test than high-fat diet.Conclusion: Zinc deficiency since early stages of intrauterine life could increase susceptibility to metabolic alterations induced by high-fat diets during postnatal life.