Meat Processing Key Laboratory of Sichuan Province, College of Food and Biological Engineering, Chengdu University, Chengdu 610106, China.
Animal Nutrition Institute, Sichuan Agricultural University, Chengdu 611130, China.
Nutrients. 2024 Oct 30;16(21):3719. doi: 10.3390/nu16213719.
Zinc (Zn), a fundamental trace element in human biology, exhibits pivotal roles in sustaining vital physiological processes and regulating metabolic homeostasis. Insufficient zinc intake has been linked to deleterious consequences on growth, reproductive functions, metabolic activities, and immune responses in both humans and animals. Oral zinc supplementation is usually performed to meet zinc requirement. Previous studies have shown that long-term supplementation of zinc in mice impaired AKT signaling and induced adipocyte hypertrophy in visceral adipose tissue.
The presented study was conducted to investigate the role and mechanism of short-term zinc supplementation on lipids metabolism. Zinc sulfate was supplemented in the drinking water of C57/BL6J male mice at 30 ppm or 90 ppm for one week. Water consumption, food intake, and body weight were analyzed, adipose tissue and serum profile of metabolites were investigated, and the key genes related to lipid metabolism were analyzed.
Short-term zinc supplementation decreased visceral adipose tissue weight and adipocyte size compared to the control group, but no difference was observed in food intake, water consumption, and body weight between the two groups. Further studies revealed that short-term zinc supplementation significantly increased the serum insulin level while decreasing the serum NEFA content. In addition, zinc supplementation increased the expression of and in the visceral adipose tissue compared with the control mice. Furthermore, the phosphorylation level of HSL and protein level of PPARg in the epididymal adipose tissue increased by zinc supplementation compared with the control mice. In comparison, the protein level of FASN was down-regulated by short-term zinc supplementation in the epididymal adipose tissue, although the expression of lipogenic genes was not changed. The expression of and were increased in zinc-supplemented adipose tissue as compared with the control group.
Our findings suggest that short-term zinc supplementation might reduce fat deposition by enhancing lipolysis in mice. Future studies could focus on the effect of intermittent zinc supplementation on fat reduction in both animal models and humans.
锌（Zn）是人体生物学中的一种基本微量元素，在维持重要生理过程和调节代谢平衡方面发挥着关键作用。人类和动物的生长、生殖功能、代谢活动和免疫反应受损都与锌摄入不足有关。通常通过口服补锌来满足锌的需求。先前的研究表明，长期给小鼠补锌会损害 AKT 信号通路，并在其内脏脂肪组织中诱导脂肪细胞肥大。
本研究旨在探讨短期补锌对脂代谢的作用和机制。在 C57/BL6J 雄性小鼠的饮用水中分别以 30ppm 或 90ppm 的浓度添加硫酸锌，持续 1 周。分析饮水量、采食量和体重，检测脂肪组织和血清代谢物谱，并分析与脂代谢相关的关键基因。
与对照组相比，短期补锌组的内脏脂肪组织重量和脂肪细胞大小减小，但两组间的采食量、饮水量和体重无差异。进一步的研究表明，短期补锌显著增加了血清胰岛素水平，同时降低了血清 NEFA 含量。此外，与对照组相比，补锌组的内脏脂肪组织中 和 的表达增加。此外，与对照组相比，补锌组附睾脂肪组织中 HSL 的磷酸化水平和 PPARg 的蛋白水平增加，而附睾脂肪组织中 FASN 的蛋白水平则被下调，尽管脂肪生成基因的表达没有改变。与对照组相比，补锌组脂肪组织中 和 的表达增加。
我们的研究结果表明，短期补锌可能通过增强小鼠的脂肪分解来减少脂肪沉积。未来的研究可以集中在间歇补锌对动物模型和人类减肥的影响上。
