Divergent effect of dehydroepiandrosterone on energy intakes of Zucker rats.

Oral dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) causes weight loss in the obese Zucker rat. To study this process, we fed lean and obese female Zucker rats either control chow diets alone or diets containing 0.6% DHEA for 4 weeks. DHEA treatment led to a significant increase in the caloric intake of lean-treatment rats and a significant decrease in obese-treatment rats compared to their respective controls. These phenotype-specific divergent effects began acutely and were sustained. The energy intake changes with DHEA treatment were significant after correcting for body weight. Divergent effects of DHEA were also observed in body weight changes and in the food efficiency ratios of the animals; DHEA affected obese rats but not lean ones. The results of the present study suggest that the appetite component of DHEA's antiobesity effect in the Zucker fatty rat cannot be discounted.