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High fat/carbohydrate ratio but not total energy intake induces lower striatal dopamine D2/3 receptor availability in diet-induced obesity

International Journal of Obesity volume 37, pages 754–757 (2013)Cite this article

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Abstract

High-energy diets that induce obesity decrease striatal dopamine D2/3 receptor (DRD2/3) availability. It is however poorly understood which components of these diets are underlying this decrease. This study assessed the role of saturated fat intake on striatal DRD2/3 availability. Forty rats were randomized to a free-choice high-fat high-sugar diet (HFHS) or a standard chow diet for 28 days. Striatal DRD2/3 availability was measured using 123I-IBZM storage phosphor imaging at day 29. The HFHS group was split in a HFHS-high-fat (HFHS-hf) and HFHS-low-fat (HFHS-lf) group based on the percentage energy intake from fat. Rats of both HFHS subgroups had increased energy intake, abdominal fat stores and plasma leptin levels compared with controls. DRD2/3 availability in the nucleus accumbens (NAcc) was significantly lower in HFHS-hf than in HFHS-lf rats, whereas it was similar for HFHS-lf and control rats. Furthermore, DRD2/3 availability in the NAcc was positively correlated with the percentage energy intake from sugar. Total energy intake was lower for HFHS-hf than for HFHS-lf rats. Together these results suggest that a diet with a high fat/carbohydrate ratio, but not total energy intake or the level of adiposity, is the best explanation for the decrease in striatal DRD2/3 availability observed in diet-induced obesity.

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Acknowledgements

We thank José van den Heuvel for her help with the body weight and energy intake measurements and Els Johannesma-Brian for plasma leptin measurements.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Nuclear Medicine, Academic Medical Center, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands

    E van de Giessen, K de Bruin & J Booij

  2. Department of Endocrinology and Metabolism, Academic Medical Center, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands

    S E la Fleur & L Eggels

  3. Amsterdam Institute for Addiction Research, Academic Medical Center, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands

    W van den Brink

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  1. E van de Giessen
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  2. S E la Fleur
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  3. L Eggels
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Correspondence to E van de Giessen.

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JB is consultant at GE Healthcare, The Netherlands. The remaining authors declare no conflict of interest.

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Supplementary Information accompanies the paper on International Journal of Obesity website

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van de Giessen, E., la Fleur, S., Eggels, L. et al. High fat/carbohydrate ratio but not total energy intake induces lower striatal dopamine D2/3 receptor availability in diet-induced obesity. Int J Obes 37, 754–757 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1038/ijo.2012.128

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