PPAR‐γ2 Expression in Response to Cafeteria Diet: Gender‐ and Depot‐Specific Effects

Objective: To investigate the effects of short‐term cafeteria (CAF) diet feeding on the expression of adipogenic transcription factors and their association with adiposity. Research Methods and Procedures: Four‐week‐old male and female Wistar rats were fed CAF diet or standard chow for 2 weeks. Body weight, energy intake, tissue weights, and serum parameters were determined. Peroxisome proliferator‐activated receptor (PPAR)‐γ2, PPARα, CCAAT enhancer‐binding protein‐α, and adipocyte differentiation and determination factor 1 mRNAs in gonadal white adipose tissue (gWAT) (visceral depot) and inguinal white adipose tissue (iWAT) (subcutaneous depot) and in interscapular brown adipose tissue were measured by reverse transcription‐polymerase chain reaction. Results: Short‐term CAF diet feeding resulted in increases in body weight, adipose tissue weights, and lipid serum levels. Increased adiposity was more related to an increase in visceral fat than an increase in subcutaneous fat. This difference was associated with a higher expression of key adipogenic transcription factors (mainly PPARγ2 and CCAAT enhancer‐binding protein‐α) in gWAT when compared with iWAT. Higher hypertrophy of gWAT was found in females, whereas males showed a higher hypertrophy of iWAT. Differential gender and depot response to CAF diet could be explained by depot and gender differential expression of key adipogenic transcription factors, especially PPARγ2. Hence, reduced hypertrophy of female iWAT and defective thermogenesis in interscapular brown adipose tissue in response to CAF diet were related to decreased PPARγ2 mRNA levels, whereas increased hypertrophy in male iWAT and gWAT and in female gWAT was related to a tendency toward increased PPARγ2 mRNA levels in response to overfeeding. Discussion: Our results suggest the involvement of PPARγ2 in gender‐ and depot‐specific effects of CAF diet on development and function in adipose tissues.