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. 2023 Jan 29;24(3):2574.
doi: 10.3390/ijms24032574.

Active Glycogen Synthase in the Liver Prevents High-Fat Diet-Induced Glucose Intolerance, Decreases Food Intake, and Lowers Body Weight

Affiliations

Active Glycogen Synthase in the Liver Prevents High-Fat Diet-Induced Glucose Intolerance, Decreases Food Intake, and Lowers Body Weight

Iliana López-Soldado et al. Int J Mol Sci. .

Abstract

Many lines of evidence demonstrate a correlation between liver glycogen content and food intake. We previously demonstrated that mice overexpressing protein targeting to glycogen (PTG) specifically in the liver-which have increased glycogen content in this organ-are protected from high-fat diet (HFD)-induced obesity by reduced food intake. However, the use of PTG to increase liver glycogen implies certain limitations. PTG stimulates glycogen synthesis but also inhibits the enzyme responsible for glycogen degradation. Furthermore, as PTG is a regulatory subunit of protein phosphatase 1 (PP1), which regulates many cellular functions, its overexpression could have side effects beyond the regulation of glycogen metabolism. Therefore, it is necessary to determine whether the direct activation of glycogen synthesis, without affecting its degradation or other cellular functions, has the same effects. To this end, we generated mice overexpressing a non-inactivatable form of glycogen synthase (GS) specifically in the liver (9A-MGSAlb mice). Control and 9a-MGSAlb mice were fed a standard diet (SD) or HFD for 16 weeks. Glucose tolerance and feeding behavior were analyzed. 9A-MGSAlb mice showed an increase in hepatic glycogen in fed and fasting conditions. When fed an HFD, these animals preserved their hepatic energy state, had a reduced food intake, and presented a lower body weight and fat mass than control animals, without changes in energy expenditure. Furthermore, 9A-MGSAlb animals showed improved glucose tolerance when fed an SD or HFD. Moreover, liver triacylglycerol levels that were increased after HFD feeding were lower in these mice. These results confirm that increased liver glycogen stores contribute to decreased appetite and improve glucose tolerance in mice fed an HFD. On the basis of our findings, strategies to preserve hepatic glycogen stores emerge as potential treatments for obesity and hyperglycemia.

Keywords: ATP; food intake; glucose; glycogen; glycogen synthase; high-fat diet; liver.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Characterization of 9A-MGSAlb mice fed a standard diet (SD) or a high-fat diet (HFD). Control and 9A-MGSAlb mice aged 6 weeks were fed an SD or HFD for 16 weeks. Fed and 16 h fasted mice were killed. (A) Liver Total GS activity under fed conditions. (B) Liver GS activity expressed as the ratio of (-) Glc-6-P/(+) Glc-6-P under fed conditions. (C) Liver glycogen content under fed conditions or a 16 h fast. Data are mean ± SEM. n = 6–10/group. * p < 0.05, *** p < 0.001.
Figure 2
Figure 2
(A) Growth curve. Body weights were measured every other week. (B) Food intake. (C) Fat mass. (D) Lean mass. (E) Plasma leptin under fed condition. (F) Liver ATP under fed condition. Data are mean ± SEM. n = 6–10/group. * p<0.05, ** p<0.01, *** p<0.001.
Figure 3
Figure 3
(A) Energy expenditure in control and 9A-MGSAlb mice fed an SD and an HFD. (B) Locomotor activity (ambulation) in control and 9A-MGSAlb animals fed an SD and an HFD. (C) Locomotor activity (total counts) in control and 9A-MGSAlb mice fed an SD and an HFD. (D) Respiratory exchange ratio (RER) in control and 9A-MGSAlb mice fed an SD and an HFD. (E) Glucose oxidation in control and 9A-MGSAlb mice fed an SD and an HFD. (F) Lipid oxidation in control and 9A-MGSAlb mice fed an SD and an HFD. Data are mean ± SEM. n = 4–7/group. * p < 0.05, ** p < 0.01, *** p < 0.001.
Figure 4
Figure 4
(A) Blood glucose concentration in fed condition. (B) Plasma insulin concentration in fed condition (* p < 0.05). (C) GTT curve for glucose. For GTTs, mice were fasted for 16 h and injected with 2 g glucose/kg body weight i.p. (††† p < 0.001, control-SD vs. 9A-MGSAlb-SD; * p < 0.05 and ** p < 0.01 control-HFD vs. 9A-MGSAlb-HFD). (D) Area under the curve (AUC) for GTT (* p < 0.05, ** p < 0.01). (E) ITT curve for glucose. For ITTs, mice were fasted for 6h and injected with 0.75 units insulin/kg body weight i.p. (* p < 0.05 control-HFD vs. 9A-MGSAlb-HFD). (F) HOMA-IR (** p < 0.01, *** p < 0.001). Data are mean ± SEM. n = 5–10/group.
Figure 5
Figure 5
(A) Liver triacylglycerol in fed condition. (B) Quantitative real-time PCR showing relative mRNA levels of MGAT1 in the livers of mice fed an SD or HFD. (C) Quantitative real-time PCR showing relative mRNA levels of SREBP1, GPAT1, ACC1α, and FASN in the livers of mice fed an SD or HFD. (D) Quantitative real-time PCR showing relative mRNA levels of PPARα, CPT1α, and ACOX1. Data are mean ± SEM. n = 5–7/group. * p < 0.05, *** p < 0.001.

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