title: Carnitine and carnitine orotate  affect the expression of the prolactin-releasing  peptide gene.
abstract: Carnitine  is involved in fatty acid metabolism in mammals and is widely used as a  nutritional supplement; carnitine orotate is a more absorbable form of  carnitine. We investigated the effects of carnitine and carnitine orotate on  mouse prolactin-releasing peptide (PrRP) mRNA expression. Twenty-four female  mice were randomly divided into four groups of six; control mice were orally  drenched with physiological saline solution (250 mg/kg body weight) and treatment  mice were orally drenched with carnitine (250 mg/kg) or carnitine orotate (250  or 750 mg/kg), once a day, for 20 days from parturition. The carnitine or  carnitine orotate was dissolved in saline solution before administration. The  hypothalamus, pituitary and ovary were sampled on day 21 after parturition, and  PrRP mRNA levels in these tissues were measured by semi-quantitative PCR, with  glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate dehydrogenase as a control. Expression of PrRP in  mice treated with carnitine and carnitine orotate was significantly increased  in the ovary and significantly reduced in the pituitary gland. Compared with  the control, hypothalamus PrRP mRNA increased significantly in the carnitine  and low-dose carnitine orotate groups and decreased significantly in the  high-dose carnitine orotate group. We conclude that carnitine and carnitine  orotate regulate expression of PrRP in the pituitary gland and ovaries.
authors.affiliation: Key Lab of Regulation on Animal Growth and Development of Agricultural Ministry of China, Henan Agricultural University, Zhengzhou, P.R. China.
authors.forename: H S
authors.initials: HS
authors.lastname: Zhu
authors.forename: Y Y
authors.initials: YY
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: M W
authors.initials: MW
authors.lastname: Lin
authors.forename: J X
authors.initials: JX
authors.lastname: Du
authors.forename: L Q
authors.initials: LQ
authors.lastname: Hang
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: L F
authors.initials: LF
authors.lastname: Wang
mesh_terms: D000284:Administration, Oral; D000818:Animals; D002331:Carnitine / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000031:analogs & derivatives; D004334:Drug Administration Schedule; D005260:Female; D015870:Gene Expression / Q000187:drug effects*; D024601:Glyceraldehyde 3-Phosphate Dehydrogenase (NADP+) / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D007031:Hypothalamus / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000378:metabolism; D051379:Mice; D009928:Organ Specificity; D010053:Ovary / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000378:metabolism; D010902:Pituitary Gland / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000378:metabolism; D011247:Pregnancy; D056690:Prolactin-Releasing Hormone / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000032:analysis / Q000096:biosynthesis; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction
chemical_list: D056690:Prolactin-Releasing Hormone; D012333:RNA, Messenger; D024601:Glyceraldehyde 3-Phosphate Dehydrogenase (NADP+); D002331:Carnitine