Effect of a long-term percutaneous adrenal steroid treatment on rat adipose tissue metabolism.
OBJECTIVE
To examine some cellular mechanisms which regulate adipose cell metabolism in ovariectomized (OVX) and intact rats subjected or not to dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA).


METHODS
Rats were assigned to one of four treatment groups for 27 weeks. The main effects tested were castration (-or+) and DHEA treatment (-or+) which consisted of a single daily percutaneous application of DHEA cream (30 mg/ml in 50% ethanol-50% propyleneglycol).


METHODS
Forty female Sprague- Dawley rats (sixteen-month old).


METHODS
Body weight and fat mass (by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry), retroperitoneal (RP) fat pad weight; plasma insulin and triglyceride levels, and HDL-cholesterol (C) concentrations; lipoprotein lipase (LPL) and hormone-sensitive lipase (HSL) activities.


RESULTS
No difference in body composition and RP fat pad weight was observed between the intact and intact-DHEA groups. LPL and HSL activities were also similar in both groups. The increased weight of OVX rats was paralleled by a higher adiposity and greater RP adipose tissue mass, which was associated with both a marked rise in LPL activity and a slight diminution in HSL activity in this depot, compared to intact animals. OVX-DHEA rats displayed a reduced adiposity and a lighter RP fat depot, which was associated with a decrease in LPL and an increase in HSL activities, compared to untreated OVX animals. Fasting plasma insulin and TG levels were also decreased whereas plasma HDL-C concentrations were increased in intact-DHEA and OVX-DHEA rats.


CONCLUSIONS
These results show that the antiobesity effects of DHEA are dependent upon the ovarian status of the animal. These effects may involve changes in the lipid storage and the mobilization capacity of adipose tissue.
Mauriège
P
P
CHUQ Medical Research Center, Department of Physiology, Laval University, Ste-Foy, Québec, Canada.
Langin
D
D
Montminy
V
V
Martel
C
C
Després
J P
JP
Bélanger
A
A
Labrie
F
F
Deshaies
Y
Y
D000273:Adipose Tissue / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000378:metabolism*; D000818:Animals; D001823:Body Composition / Q000187:drug effects; D008076:Cholesterol, HDL / Q000097:blood; D003687:Dehydroepiandrosterone / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000494:pharmacology*; D005260:Female; D007328:Insulin / Q000097:blood; D008071:Lipoprotein Lipase / Q000378:metabolism; D010052:Ovariectomy; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D002787:Sterol Esterase / Q000378:metabolism; D014280:Triglycerides / Q000097:blood
D008076:Cholesterol, HDL; D007328:Insulin; D014280:Triglycerides; D003687:Dehydroepiandrosterone; D002787:Sterol Esterase; D008071:Lipoprotein Lipase