Abstract
Energy balance is essential for all species. Ligand-receptor interactions mediate processes that regulate body activities like reproduction and metabolism based on the energy status. Such receptors are the heparan sulfate proteoglycans and specifically the family of syndecans. Therefore we investigated the differences of metabolic parameters of heterozygous Syndecan 1 mice (Sdc1+/-) with reduced expression of Sdc1 and the corresponding wild type mice. Sdc1+/- mice have a reduced body weight although they show increased leptin and decreased corticosterone levels. Furthermore, their food and water intake is increased. This is accompanied with less adipose tissue, smaller adipocytes and thus an increased density of adipocytes. For the detailed analysis of the metabolism the automated PhenoMaster system has been used, which allowed continuous and undisturbed recording of food and water intake, energy expenditure and movement. The reason for the lower body weight was the higher energy expenditure of these animals compared to controls. Additionally, female Sdc1+/- mice showed an increased locomotor activity. Referring to organs, the intestine in Sdc1+/- mice was heavier and longer, but no differences at the cellular level could be observed. These findings were independent of normal mating or vice versa embryo transfers of Sdc1+/- and wild type embryos in recipient females of the other genotype. Herein we showed that the reduced expression of Sdc1 led to an altered metabolism on fetal as well as on maternal side, which may play a role in the growth restriction observed in human pregnancy pathologies and in mice lacking Sdc1.
Highlights
Reproductive processes in mammals, in females, require an enormous amount of energy and they are suppressed during times of low-energy availability
The observed difference between the Sdc1+/- and the wild type (WT) mice was independent from gender, age and degree of relationship of the animals (Table 1)
Corticosterone, glucose and leptin levels of juvenile males and females showed no significant differences between the Sdc1+/- and WT mice (Fig 4)
Summary
Reproductive processes in mammals, in females, require an enormous amount of energy and they are suppressed during times of low-energy availability. For a successful energy homeostasis and fertility maintenance an adequate communication between the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axis and the peripheral metabolic status is required [1]. Functions like ovulation, fertility and spermatogenesis or metabolic processes such as food intake and nutritional demands [2]. The overexpression of Sdc in the hypothalamic nuclei, the center of energy balance control, led to maturity-onset obesity and type-II diabetes [8]. In human, decreased expression of Sdc on the maternal site was associated with pregnancy associated pathologies like intrauterine growth restriction [10], preeclampsia [11] and hemolysis, elevated liver enzymes and low platelet count (HELLP) syndrome [12]
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