Effect of neonatal nutritional programming in hypothalamic responsiveness to adiponectin

• Grant number: 13/17379-2
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: November 01, 2013
• End date: August 31, 2015
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Physiology - Physiology of Organs and Systems
• Principal Investigator: Lucila Leico Kagohara Elias
• Grantee: Mariana Peduti Halah
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Medicina de Ribeirão Preto (FMRP). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). Ribeirão Preto , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Changes of environmental nutritional influences evaluated through the model of manipulation of litter size during the neonatal period can be a tool to the study of the functional and structural changes in the organism associated with the development of obesity and metabolic syndrome in adulthood. This project will investigate the effects of neonatal programming in secretion of adiponectin, evaluating the plasmatic concentrations and the hypothalamic responsiveness to this adipokin and will relate them with the energetic balance: food intake, weight gain and the amount of fat mass and lean mass of animals subjected to the reduction or to the increase in litter size during lactating period. We will use male Wistar rats, which will be subdivided in groups of 3 (small litter), 10 (normal litter) and 16 (large litter) soon after birth, to evaluate the effect of manipulation of litter size in epigenetic neonatal programming. We will evaluate the weigh gain during lactation period and, after weaning, besides the weigh gain, we will also evaluate the food intake, of groups of litters that will or will not be stimulated with periferal intraperitoneal injection of adiponectin. The neuronal activation will also be analysed, evaluated animals that were subjected to the reduction or to the increase in litter size, during lactation period, after stimulation with adiponectin. The hormonal dosage will be performed through collecting of truncal blood. The animals will be decapitated to collect brain tissue in order to perform RT-PCR and Western Blotting to determine p-AMPK and immunohistochemistry for Fos protein detection. The periepididimal and retroperitoneal white adipose tissues will be collected for weighing. (AU)