Abstract
BackgroundObesity, oxidative stress and inflammation, by triggering insulin resistance, may contribute to the accumulation of hepatic fat, and this accumulation by lipotoxicity can lead the organ to fail. Because obesity is growing at an alarming rate and, worryingly, in a precocious way, the present study aimed to investigate the effects of moderate physical training performed from childhood to adulthood on liver fat metabolism in rats.MethodsTwenty rats that were 28 days old were divided into two groups: control (C) and trained (T). The C Group was kept in cages without exercise, and the T group was submitted to swimming exercise for 1 hour/day, 5 days/week from 28 to 90 days of age (8 weeks) at 80% of the anaerobic threshold determined by the lactate minimum test. At the end of the experiment, the body weight gain, insulin sensitivity (glucose disappearance rate during the insulin tolerance test), concentrations of free fatty acids (FFA) and triglycerides (TG) and hepatic lipogenic rate were analyzed. For the statistical analysis, the Student t-test was used with the level of significance preset at 5%.ResultsThe T group showed lower body weight gain, FFA concentrations, fat accumulation, hepatic lipogenic rate and insulin resistance.ConclusionThe regular practice of moderate physical exercise from childhood can contribute to the reduction of obesity and insulin resistance and help prevent the development of accumulation of hepatic fat in adulthood.
Highlights
Obesity, oxidative stress and inflammation, by triggering insulin resistance, may contribute to the accumulation of hepatic fat, and this accumulation by lipotoxicity can lead the organ to fail
The attack of the organ involves oxidative stress, causing peroxidation of membrane lipids in the hepatocytes and cytokine production, especially de Moura et al Lipids in Health and Disease 2013, 12:29 http://www.lipidworld.com/content/12/1/29 of tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α), which are partly responsible for the progression of hepatic steatosis to steatohepatitis and cirrhosis [5,7]
The animals from the T group showed lower weight gain, free fatty acid and triglycerides concentrations and hepatic lipogenic rate compared with the sedentary group (Figure 2A, B, C and D)
Summary
Oxidative stress and inflammation, by triggering insulin resistance, may contribute to the accumulation of hepatic fat, and this accumulation by lipotoxicity can lead the organ to fail. The etiopathogenesis of NAFLD includes oxidative stress, inflammation and insulin resistance and a increased synthesis of triglycerides and retention in the hepatocyte, leading to macrovesicular steatosis. The attack of the organ involves oxidative stress, causing peroxidation of membrane lipids in the hepatocytes and cytokine production, especially de Moura et al Lipids in Health and Disease 2013, 12:29 http://www.lipidworld.com/content/12/1/29 of tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α), which are partly responsible for the progression of hepatic steatosis to steatohepatitis and cirrhosis [5,7]
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