Experimental obesity syndromes in rats: Influence of diet palatability on maintenance body weights

Abstract

Female rats with ventromedial hypothalamic (VMH) lesions, parasagittal hypothalamic knife cuts (KC), or dorsolateral tegmental (DLT) lesions were maintained successively on 0.2 and 0.4% quinine chow, plain chow, pellets, wet mash, and high fat diets (15–45 days each). Only VMH rats overate the 0.2% quinine diet and only KC rats underate the 0.4% quinine diet. Although DLT rats did not overeat the unadulterated chow and pellet diets, as did VMH and KC rats, all three surgical groups attained roughly comparable elevated body weight means after access to the wet mash and high fat diets. Thus, dietary manipulations clearly induce differential patterns of feeding behavior in these three obesity syndromes.