Premium
Pregnancy affects triglyceride metabolism by decreasing hepatic triglycerides and increasing the number of large and small VLDL subfractions
Author(s) -
Kang Jung Sook,
Kang Young Hee,
Koo Sung I,
Contois John H,
Fernandez Maria Luz
Publication year - 2006
Publication title -
the faseb journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.709
H-Index - 277
eISSN - 1530-6860
pISSN - 0892-6638
DOI - 10.1096/fasebj.20.4.a137-b
Subject(s) - very low density lipoprotein , medicine , endocrinology , triglyceride , cholesterol , chemistry , metabolism , lipid metabolism , lipoprotein , biology
To determine whether post‐pregnancy affects triglyceride metabolism, female guinea pigs [12 non‐pregnant (NP) and 6 pregnant (Preg)] were fed a hypercholesterolemic diet containing 0.25% cholesterol for 5 wk. Pregnant guinea pigs were sacrificed 1 to 7 d after delivery. Plasma total cholesterol HDL or triglycerides (TG) were not different between groups. However, hepatic triglycerides were significantly higher in the NP guinea pigs (11.1 ± 3.6 mg/g) compared to the Preg group (6.5 ± 4.5 mg/g) (P <0.01). Number of lipoprotein particles and size was evaluated in 8 NP and 6 Preg guinea pigs. Although the number of total VLDL particles was not affected by pregnancy status (30.7 ± 23.2 nmol/L and 50.4 ± 18.9 nmol/L for NP and P guinea pigs respectively), the subclasses of VLDL were altered. Large VLDL (27–60 nm) was increased in the Preg group (3.3 ± 3.9) compared to the NP group (0.35 ± 0.64 nmol/L) (P <0.05). Similarly the smaller VLDL (> 23 nm) was higher in the Preg group (37.8 ± 10.3 nmo/L) than the NP group (22.3 ± 18.0 nmol/L) (P < 0.05). In addition, plasma TG were significantly correlated (r=0.639, P< 0.01) with the number of large VLDL but not with medium or small VLDL. These studies suggest that the lower hepatic TG observed in the Preg group are possibly related to the secretion of large VLDL particles.