Alterations in PGC-1α and UCP1 Gene Expression in Epicardial Aadipose Tissue and Serum Orexin-A Following Aerobic Exercise in High-Fat Diet Induced Obesity of Male Wistar Rats

Due to the proximity of epicardial adipose tissue (EAT) to the myocardial tissue, it is considered that EAT be more pathogenic than subcutaneous adipose tissue. The aim of this study was to evaluate the alterations of PGC-1α andUCP1 gene expression in EAT and orexin-A following aerobic exercise in high-fat diet induced and obese male wistar rats.

In this study, 32 male wistar rats aged 6-week and weight of 180-200 g, assigned randomly in: 1) Normal fat diet (NFD), 2) High-fat diet induced obesity (HFDO), 3) Normal fat diet after high-fat diet induced obesity group (HFDO-NFD) and Aerobic exercise group with normal fat diet after high-fat diet induced obesity group (HFDO-AEX). After obesity-induced in HFDO group (8-week diet with 60% fat) and 48 hours after eight weeks of aerobic exercise (60% of maximal training capacity, 4 sessions/week) in other groups, fasting levels of OXA, Lee index, lipid profile, and gene expression of PGC-1α and UCP1 in EAT have been measured.

The results revealed that HFD significantly decreased serum OXA, HDL-c, gene expression of PGC1α and UCP1, also caused a significant increase in Lee index, TG, LDL-c, cholesterol and EAT mass (p≤0.001), but aerobic exercise significantly improved the OXA (34.74%), HDL-c (23.65%), gene expression of PGC-1α and UCP1 (61.28% and 82.67%), lipid profile, EAT mass (76.19%) and Lee index (18.34%) to the normal levels (P≤ 0.001).

Aerobic exercise by affecting OXA and gene expression of PGC-1α and UCP1 in EAT, probably could reduce the risk factors of cardiovascular diseases due to high-fat diet.