Effect of Growth Hormone and Calorie Restriction on the Expression of Antioxidant Enzymes in the Liver and Kidney of Growth Hormone Receptor Knockout Mice

Abstract

Caloric restriction (CR) can delay aging and prolong life span and these actions may be related to reduced oxidative damage. Mice with disrupted growth hormone (GH) receptor/binding protein knockout (GHRKO) live significantly longer than their normal siblings. Therefore, it is of interest to examine the effects of chronic CR on hepatic and renal antioxidant enzymes as well as lipid peroxidation (LP) as an oxidative stress marker in GHRKO mice. Female GHRKO and normal mice were either fed ad libitum (AL) or subjected to 30% CR starting at 2 months of age and examined at the age of 9 months. In the liver, catalase (CAT) activity was significantly increased in GHRKO-AL as compared to normal control -AL animals. CR reduced CAT activity in both GHRKO and normal phenotypes. Cu/Zn superoxide dismutase (SOD1) activity was also higher in GHRKO-AL as compared to normal-AL mice. However, CR reduced SOD1 activity in GHRKO mutants. Glutathione peroxidase (GPx) activity was significantly decreased in GHRKO-AL mice and further reduced in GHRKO-CR group of animals. CR significantly increased LP in GHRKOs while its activity was not altered in GHRKO-AL group of mice. In the kidney, CAT activity was lower in GHRKO-AL as compared to normal-AL, however CR did not induce any significant effect in both phenotypes. Similarly, SOD1 levels were significantly lower in GHRKO than in normal mice. GPx expression was higher in GHRKO-AL as compared to control-AL. CR reduced GPx activity in GHRKO mice but increased it in controls as compared to their AL counterparts. There was no difference in LP expression between GHRKO-AL and normal-AL mice. However, CR significantly increased its levels in both phenotypes. Although these findings do not support the hypothesis that CR would increase the capacity of ROS defense mechanisms in GHRKO mice by increasing antioxidant enzymes levels, they do agree with some of the reported effects of CR on their expression. We suspect that GH resistance and CR may affect aging by different mechanisms and if CR delays aging in GHRKO animals it is not due to changes in the activity of antioxidant enzymes.