Ghrelin stimulates food intake and growth hormone release in rats with thermal injury: synthesis of ghrelin.
Ghrelin, a 28-residue octanoylated peptide recently isolated from the stomach, exhibits anti-cachectic properties through regulating food intake, energy expenditure, adiposity, growth hormone secretion and immune response. Burn injury induces persistent hypermetabolism and muscle wasting. We therefore hypothesized that ghrelin may also play a role in the pathophysiology of burn-induced cachexia. Overall ghrelin expression in the stomach over 10 days after burn was significantly decreased (p = 0.0003). Total plasma ghrelin was reduced 1 day after burn. Thus, changes in ghrelin synthesis and release may contribute to burn-induced dysfunctions. Ghrelin (30 nmol/rat, i.p.) greatly stimulated 2 h food intake in rats on five separate days after burn and in control rats. On post-burn day 15, plasma growth hormone levels were significantly lower than in controls, and this was restored to normal levels by ghrelin (10 nmol/rat, i.p.). These observations suggest that ghrelin retains its ability to favorably modulate both the peripheral anabolic and the central orexigenic signals, even after thermal injury despite ongoing changes due to prolonged and profound hypermetabolism, suggesting that long-term treatment with ghrelin may attenuate burn-induced dysfunctions.
Department of Surgery, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, PO Box 670558, Cincinnati, OH 45267-0558, USA. ambi.bala@uc.edu
Ambikaipakan
A
Balasubramaniam
Steve
S
Wood
Rashika
R
Joshi
Chunhua
C
Su
Lou Ann
LA
Friend
Sulaiman
S
Sheriff
J Howard
JH
James
D000818:Animals; D002056:Burns / Q000473:pathology; D002100:Cachexia / Q000473:pathology; D004435:Eating; D005753:Gastric Mucosa / Q000378:metabolism; D054439:Ghrelin; D013006:Growth Hormone / Q000493:pharmacokinetics*; D006358:Hot Temperature; D008297:Male; D008954:Models, Biological; D036361:Peptide Hormones / Q000096:biosynthesis* / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000502:physiology*; D010455:Peptides / Q000737:chemistry; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D013997:Time Factors
D054439:Ghrelin; D036361:Peptide Hormones; D010455:Peptides; D013006:Growth Hormone