title: Physical exercise antagonizes clinical and anatomical features characterizing Lieber-DeCarli diet-induced obesity and related metabolic disorders.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Lieber-DeCarli diet has been used to induce obesity and non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH). As scarce anatomical and clinical-related information on this diet model exists and being exercise an advised strategy to counteract metabolic diseases, we aimed to analyze the preventive (voluntary physical activity - VPA) and therapeutic (endurance training - ET) effect of exercise on clinical/anatomical features of rats fed with Lieber-DeCarli diet.
  
  
  METHODS
  In the beginning of the protocol, Sprague-Dawley rats were divided into standard-diet sedentary (SS, n = 20), standard-diet VPA (SVPA, n = 10), high-fat diet sedentary (HS, n = 20) and high-fat diet VPA (HVPA, n = 10) groups. After 9-weeks, half (n = 10) of SS and HS groups were engaged in an ET program (8 wks/5 d/wk/60 min/day). At this time, a blood sample was collected for biochemical analysis. At the end of protocol (17-weeks) anatomic measures were assessed. Heart, liver, femur and visceral fat were weighted and blood was collected again. Liver section was used for histopathological examination.
  
  
  RESULTS
  At 17-weeks, high-fat diet increased visceral adiposity (HS vs. SS), which was counteracted by both exercises. However, ET was the only intervention able to diminished obesity-related measures and the histological features of NASH. Moreover, blood analysis at 9 weeks showed that high-fat diet increased ALT, AST, cholesterol and HDL while VLDL and TG levels were decreased (HS vs. SS). Notably, although these parameters were counteracted after 9-weeks of VPA, they were transitory and not observed after 17-weeks.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  ET used as a therapeutic tool mitigated the clinical/anatomical-related features induced by Liber-DeCarli diet, thus possibly contributing to control obesity and metabolic disorders.
authors.affiliation: Research Center in Physical Activity, Health and Leisure, Faculty of Sport, University of Porto, Portugal. Electronic address: igoncalvs@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Inês O
authors.initials: IO
authors.lastname: Gonçalves
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Medicine, University of Porto, Portugal.
authors.forename: Emanuel
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Passos
authors.affiliation: Research Center in Physical Activity, Health and Leisure, Faculty of Sport, University of Porto, Portugal.
authors.forename: Sílvia
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Rocha-Rodrigues
authors.affiliation: Department of Physiology and Immunology, Faculty of Biology, University of Barcelona, Spain.
authors.forename: Joan R
authors.initials: JR
authors.lastname: Torrella
authors.affiliation: Department of Physiology and Immunology, Faculty of Biology, University of Barcelona, Spain.
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Rizo
authors.affiliation: Research Center in Physical Activity, Health and Leisure, Faculty of Sport, University of Porto, Portugal.
authors.forename: Estela
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Santos-Alves
authors.affiliation: Department of Biomedical Sciences and Human Oncology, University Medical School, Bari, Italy.
authors.forename: Piero
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Portincasa
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Medicine, University of Porto, Portugal.
authors.forename: Maria J
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Martins
authors.affiliation: Research Center in Physical Activity, Health and Leisure, Faculty of Sport, University of Porto, Portugal.
authors.forename: António
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ascensão
authors.affiliation: Research Center in Physical Activity, Health and Leisure, Faculty of Sport, University of Porto, Portugal.
authors.forename: José
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Magalhães
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D059305:Diet, High-Fat / Q000009:adverse effects*; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D005081:Exercise Therapy / Q000379:methods*; D050152:Intra-Abdominal Fat / Q000473:pathology*; D008099:Liver / Q000503:physiopathology*; D008297:Male; D009043:Motor Activity; D065626:Non-alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease / Q000139:chemically induced / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D016896:Treatment Outcome
keywords: Body composition; Liver; NASH; Physical activity