Background
Mitochondrial dysfunction is thought to play a crucial role in the etiology of insulin resistance, in which skeletal muscle is the main tissue contributor. Sex differences in skeletal muscle insulin and antioxidant responses to high-fat-diet (HFD) feeding have been described. The
Conclusions
We conclude that HFD rats may induce skeletal muscle mitochondrial biogenesis as an attempt to compensate the deleterious consequences of adiponectin and insulin resistance on oxidative metabolism, and that the effects of HFD feeding are sex-dependent and muscle-type specific.
Methods
Gastrocnemius and soleus muscles of male and female Wistar rats of 2 months of age fed with a high-fat-diet (HFD) or a low fat diet for 26 weeks were used. Mitochondrial biogenesis and oxidative damage markers, oxidative capacity and antioxidant defences were analyzed. Serum insulin sensitivity parameters and the levels of proteins involved in adiponectin signaling pathway were also determined.
Results
HFD feeding induced mitochondrial biogenesis in both sexes, but to a higher degree in male rats. Although HFD female rats showed greater antioxidant protection and maintained a better insulin sensitivity profile than their male counterparts, both sexes showed an impaired response to adiponectin, which was more evident in gastrocnemius muscle. Conclusions: We conclude that HFD rats may induce skeletal muscle mitochondrial biogenesis as an attempt to compensate the deleterious consequences of adiponectin and insulin resistance on oxidative metabolism, and that the effects of HFD feeding are sex-dependent and muscle-type specific.