Swanson Kelly S, Belsito Katherine R, Vester Brittany M, Schook Lawrence B
Department of Animal Sciences, University of Illinois, Urbana, Illinois, USA.
Arch Anim Nutr. 2009 Apr;63(2):160-71. doi: 10.1080/17450390902733934.
Obesity is a major problem in today's dog population, with aged animals having an increased susceptibility to obesity-related comorbidities. A molecular approach to studying adipose tissue may enhance our understanding of its role in energy homeostasis and the disease process. Thus, the objective of this study was to use canine microarrays to compare gene expression profiles of adipose tissue from geriatric and young adult dogs. Adipose tissue samples were collected from six geriatric (12 year-old) and six young adult (one-year-old) female beagles after being fed one of two diets (animal protein-based vs. plant protein-based) for 12 months. RNA samples were hybridised to canine microarrays. Statistical analyses indicated that age had the greatest impact on gene expression, with 65 differentially expressed gene transcripts in geriatric dogs. Diet had a minor impact on gene expression, altering the expression of only 19 gene transcripts. In general, adipose tissue of geriatric dogs had increased expression of genes associated with cell cycle and growth, cell development and structure, cellular trafficking and protein processing, immune function, metabolism, and transcription and translation, as compared with that of young adults. Overall, our mRNA data suggest either an increased population of macrophages or increased inflammatory nature of adipocytes in adipose tissue of aged dogs.
肥胖是当今犬类群体中的一个主要问题，老龄动物对肥胖相关合并症的易感性增加。一种研究脂肪组织的分子方法可能会增进我们对其在能量稳态和疾病过程中作用的理解。因此，本研究的目的是使用犬类微阵列来比较老年犬和年轻成年犬脂肪组织的基因表达谱。在给六只老年（12岁）和六只年轻成年（1岁）雌性比格犬喂食两种饮食（动物蛋白型与植物蛋白型）之一12个月后，采集脂肪组织样本。RNA样本与犬类微阵列进行杂交。统计分析表明，年龄对基因表达的影响最大，老年犬中有65个差异表达的基因转录本。饮食对基因表达的影响较小，仅改变了19个基因转录本的表达。总体而言，与年轻成年犬相比，老年犬的脂肪组织中与细胞周期和生长、细胞发育和结构、细胞运输和蛋白质加工、免疫功能、代谢以及转录和翻译相关的基因表达增加。总的来说，我们的mRNA数据表明，老年犬脂肪组织中巨噬细胞数量增加或脂肪细胞的炎症性质增强。
