Institute of Pharmacology & Experimental Therapeutics & Coimbra Institute for Clinical and Biomedical Research (iCBR), Faculty of Medicine, University of Coimbra, 3000-548 Coimbra, Portugal.
CIBB-Center for Innovative Biomedicine and Biotechnology, University of Coimbra, 3004-504 Coimbra, Portugal.
Nutrients. 2024 Feb 13;16(4):513. doi: 10.3390/nu16040513.
Blueberries, red fruits enriched in polyphenols and fibers, are envisaged as a promising nutraceutical intervention in a plethora of metabolic diseases. Prediabetes, an intermediate state between normal glucose tolerance and type 2 diabetes, fuels the development of complications, including hepatic steatosis. In previous work, we have demonstrated that blueberry juice (BJ) supplementation benefits glycemic control and lipid profile, which was accompanied by an amelioration of hepatic mitochondrial bioenergetics. The purpose of this study is to clarify the impact of long-term BJ nutraceutical intervention on cellular mechanisms that govern hepatic lipid homeostasis, namely autophagy and endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress, in a rat model of prediabetes. Two groups of male Wistar rats, 8-weeks old, were fed a prediabetes-inducing high-fat diet (HFD) and one group was fed a control diet (CD). From the timepoint where the prediabetic phenotype was achieved (week 16) until the end of the study (week 24), one of the HFD-fed groups was daily orally supplemented with 25 g/kg body weight (BW) of BJ (HFD + BJ). BW, caloric intake, glucose tolerance and insulin sensitivity were monitored throughout the study. The serum and hepatic lipid contents were quantified. Liver and interscapular brown and epidydimal white adipose tissue depots (iBAT and eWAT) were collected for histological analysis and to assess thermogenesis, ER stress and autophagy markers. The gut microbiota composition and the short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) content were determined in colon fecal samples. BJ supplementation positively impacted glycemic control but was unable to prevent obesity and adiposity. BJ-treated animals presented a reduction in fecal SCFAs, increased markers of arrested iBAT thermogenesis and energy expenditure, together with an aggravation of HFD-induced lipotoxicity and hepatic steatosis, which were accompanied by the inhibition of autophagy and ER stress responses in the liver. In conclusion, despite the improvement of glucose tolerance, BJ supplementation promoted a major impact on lipid management mechanisms at liver and AT levels in prediabetic animals, which might affect disease course.
蓝莓富含多酚和纤维,被认为是一种有前途的营养干预手段,可以治疗多种代谢疾病。糖尿病前期是一种介于正常糖耐量和 2 型糖尿病之间的中间状态,会促进并发症的发展,包括肝脂肪变性。在之前的工作中,我们已经证明蓝莓汁(BJ)补充有益于血糖控制和脂质谱,同时改善肝线粒体生物能量学。本研究旨在阐明长期 BJ 营养干预对糖尿病前期大鼠模型中控制肝脂质稳态的细胞机制的影响,即自噬和内质网(ER)应激。两组 8 周龄雄性 Wistar 大鼠分别喂食诱导糖尿病前期的高脂肪饮食(HFD)和对照饮食(CD)。从获得糖尿病前期表型的时间点(第 16 周)到研究结束(第 24 周),其中一组 HFD 喂养大鼠每天口服补充 25 g/kg 体重(BW)的 BJ(HFD + BJ)。在整个研究过程中监测 BW、热量摄入、葡萄糖耐量和胰岛素敏感性。定量检测血清和肝脂质含量。收集肝脏和肩胛间棕色脂肪组织(iBAT)和附睾白色脂肪组织(eWAT)进行组织学分析,并评估产热、ER 应激和自噬标志物。测定结肠粪便样本中的肠道微生物群落组成和短链脂肪酸(SCFA)含量。BJ 补充对血糖控制有积极影响,但不能预防肥胖和脂肪堆积。BJ 处理的动物粪便中 SCFA 减少,iBAT 产热和能量消耗的标志物增加,同时 HFD 诱导的脂毒性和肝脂肪变性加重,伴随着肝脏自噬和 ER 应激反应的抑制。总之,尽管改善了葡萄糖耐量,但 BJ 补充对糖尿病前期动物肝脏和 AT 水平的脂质管理机制产生了重大影响,这可能会影响疾病进程。
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