EFFECTS OF PROTEIN SUPPLEMENTATION ON SKELETAL MUSCLE OF OBESE RATS DURING CALORIC RESTRICTION.

• Grant number: 24/00008-6
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: May 01, 2024
• End date: July 31, 2025
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Physiology - Physiology of Organs and Systems
• Principal Investigator: Anabelle Silva Cornachione
• Grantee: Júlia Pasqual
• Host Institution: Centro de Ciências Biológicas e da Saúde (CCBS). Universidade Federal de São Carlos (UFSCAR). São Carlos , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Obesity is one of the main triggers of various chronic diseases, causing significant changes in tissues such as skeletal muscle. The large increase in pro- and anti-inflammatory myokines in this process can compromise the trophic and functional aspects of the muscle. Nutritional therapies such as energy/food restriction (AR) have been studied and, above all, have been shown to be effective against obesity. However, depending on the length of time and magnitude, this can lead to the loss of lean mass (skeletal muscle) as well as fat, further compromising the morphology and function of the tissue. To minimize this loss, strategies such as protein supplementation are effective in muscles undergoing training, but little is known about their effects on skeletal muscles in situations restricted to weight loss. Aim: To analyze the effects of animal protein supplementation on trophism and fiber types in skeletal muscle of obese rats under calorie restriction. Methods: 32 male Wistar rats divided into 4 groups (n=8) will be used: Obese, ad libitum, Food Restriction 60% and Food Restriction with supplementation. After the procedures, the animals will be euthanized under anesthesia and the soleus muscle will be excised for histological and morphometric analysis (trophism and fiber proportion). DXA will be used to analyze body composition at the beginning and end of the restriction. Expected results: We expect that the group subjected to AR alone will show changes in the trophic nature of the muscles studied, while animals subjected to AR and supplementation will improve the cytoarchitectural and trophic aspects of the muscle tissue.