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Postnatal environment overrides genetic and prenatal factors influencing offspring obesity and insulin resistance.

Authors :
Gorski JN
Dunn-Meynell AA
Hartman TG
Levin BE
Source :
American journal of physiology. Regulatory, integrative and comparative physiology [Am J Physiol Regul Integr Comp Physiol] 2006 Sep; Vol. 291 (3), pp. R768-78. Date of Electronic Publication: 2006 Apr 13.
Publication Year :
2006

Abstract

There is growing evidence that the postnatal environment can have a major impact on the development of obesity and insulin resistance in offspring. We postulated that cross-fostering obesity-prone offspring to lean, obesity-resistant dams would ameliorate their development of obesity and insulin resistance, while fostering lean offspring to genetically obese dams would lead them to develop obesity and insulin resistance as adults. We found that obesity-prone pups cross-fostered to obesity-resistant dams remained obese but did improve their insulin sensitivity as adults. In contrast, obesity-resistant pups cross-fostered to genetically obese dams showed a diet-induced increase in adiposity, reduced insulin sensitivity, and associated changes in hypothalamic neuropeptide, insulin, and leptin receptors, which might have contributed to their metabolic defects. There was a selective increase in insulin levels and differences in fatty acid composition of obese dam milk which might have contributed to the increased adiposity, insulin resistance, and hypothalamic changes in obesity-resistant cross-fostered offspring. These results demonstrate that postnatal factors can overcome both genetic predisposition and prenatal factors in determining the development of adiposity, insulin sensitivity, and the brain pathways that mediate these functions.

Details

Language :
English
ISSN :
0363-6119
Volume :
291
Issue :
3
Database :
MEDLINE
Journal :
American journal of physiology. Regulatory, integrative and comparative physiology
Publication Type :
Academic Journal
Accession number :
16614055
Full Text :
https://doi.org/10.1152/ajpregu.00138.2006