Possible Role of Insulin Status in the Increased Lipogenic Enzyme Activity by Dietary Medium-Chain Triglyceride in Rat Liver

Abstract

The possible role of insulin status in the increase in liver lipogenic enzyme activities upon feeding medium-chain triglyceride (MCT) was investigated with streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats and insulin-treated diabetic rats. Rats were fed synthetic diets that contained either 2% corn oil (control), fat free, 13% MCT +2% corn oil, or 13% lard +2% corn oil, respectively. Feeding the MCT diet for 3 days increased serum ketone bodies in both the normal and diabetic rats. Insulin levels of MCT-fed rats tended to be higher than in normal animals. MCT feeding caused an enhancement of fatty acid synthetase (FAS) and malic enzyme (ME) in the liver of normal rats, whereas diabetic rats failed to register an increase in those activities due to MCT feeding. Administration of insulin to diabetic rats resulted in a recovery of the level of those enzyme activities to about the same degree as in each of the normal rat groups. It was interesting that diabetic MCT-fed rats with insulin treatment maintained higher enzyme activities in comparison to the lard and control groups. These results suggest that the increase in lipogenic enzyme activities caused by dietary MCT is presumably dependent on differences in insulin status.