Sadaichi Sakamoto

Effect of Exercise Training and Food Restriction on Endothelium-Dependent Relaxation in the Otsuka Long-Evans Tokushima Fatty Rat, a Model of Spontaneous NIDDM

We investigated whether endothelial function may be impaired in the Otsuka Long-Evans Tokushima Fatty (OLETF) rat, a model of spontaneous NIDDM. The effect of exercise training and food restriction on endothelial function was also studied. OLETF rats were divided into three groups at age 16 weeks: sedentary, exercise trained, and food restricted (70% of the food intake of sedentary rats). Otsuka Long-Evans Tokushima rats were used as the age-matched nondiabetic controls. Endothelium-dependent relaxation of the thoracic aorta induced by histamine was significantly attenuated in the sedentary or food-restricted rats, and exercise training improved endothelial function. Relaxation induced by sodium nitroprusside, a donor of nitric oxide, did not differ significantly among groups. Both exercise training and food restriction significantly suppressed plasma levels of glucose and insulin and serum levels of triacylglycerol and cholesterol and reduced the accumulation of abdominal fat. Insulin sensitivity, as measured by the hyperinsulinemic- euglycemic clamp technique, was significantly decreased in sedentary rats but was enhanced in exercise- trained and food-restricted rats. The urinary excretion of nitrite was significantly decreased in sedentary and food-restricted rats compared with nondiabetic rats and was significantly increased in exercise-trained rats. These results indicate that exercise training, but not food restriction, prevents endothelial dysfunction in NIDDM rats, presumably due to the exercise-induced increase in the production of nitric oxide.

The lipoprotein lipase activator, NO-1886, suppresses fat accumulation and insulin resistance in rats fed a high-fat diet

Aims/hypothesis. Fat balance is critical in the aetiology of obesity and related diseases. Lipoprotein lipase is of major importance in lipid metabolism. The aim of this study was to investigate the long-term effects of the lipoprotein lipase activator, NO-1886, on substrate utilisation, adiposity and insulin action in rats fed a high-fat diet.¶Methods. Male, Sprague-Dawley rats were fed for 10 weeks on a chow diet or a high-fat diet with, or without, NO-1886 (50 mg · kg–1· day–1). Weight gain, fat accumulation and both hormone-sensitive and lipoprotein, lipase activities were measured. Insulin action was assessed by the euglycaemic hyperinsulinaemic clamp and metabolic rate/substrate utilisation by open-circuit respirometry.¶Results. Compared with chow-fed controls, a high-fat diet increased weight gain, an effect lessened by NO-1886 [weight gain (g): chow, 37 ± 3, high-fat, 222 ± 9; high-fat + NO-1886, 109 ± 6, all groups differed p < 0.001]. A similar pattern existed for fat accumulation [visceral fat (g): chow, 35.9 ± 3.2; high-fat, 81.9 ± 6.6; high-fat + NO-1886, 52.3 ± 4.7, p < 0.01 high-fat vs the other groups]. A high-fat diet induced whole-body insulin resistance (clamp glucose infusion rate: 4.8 ± 1.3 mg · kg–1· min–1 vs 10.6 ± 1.1 for the chow group, p < 0.01) with NO-1886 lessening this effect (8.3 ± 0.5, p < 0.05 vs high-fat). The 24-h respiratory quotient was lower in the high-fat + NO-1886 group (0.825 ± 0.010) compared with high-fat alone (0.849 ± 0.004, p < 0.05). A high-fat diet increased lipoprotein and hormone-sensitive, lipase activities in epididymal fat, an effect not altered by NO-1886. In myocardium and skeletal muscle a high-fat diet lowered lipoprotein lipase activity, an effect lessened by NO-1886.¶Conclusion/interpretation: Lipoprotein lipase activators could have potential benefits for the treatment of obesity by increasing fat utilisation. [Diabetologia (2000) 43: 875–880]

Endothelium-dependent relaxation by cilostazol, a phosphodiesteras III inhibitor, on rat thoracic aorta.

The relaxation effect of cilostazol, a phosphodiesterase III inhibitor, on the thoracic aorta was investigated. Cilostazol induced the relaxation of the thoracic aorta precontracted by phenylephrine in a concentration-dependent manner. The concentration-dependent relaxation was shifted to the right in the endothelium denuded aorta compared with that of intact endothelium, suggesting that this relaxation was partly dependent on endothelium. Cilostazol-induced relaxation of thoracic aorta tone was reversed by treatment with N(G)-nitro L-arginine (L-NNA), a competitive inhibitor of nitric oxide (NO) synthase. Cilostazol also significantly increased the NO level in the porcine thoracic aorta. In rats treated with cilostazol, the urinary excretion of nitrites, a stable metabolite of NO, and basal production of NO of the aortic ring were significantly greater than in those without treatment. These findings indicate that cilostazol-induced vasodilation of the rat thoracic aorta was dependent on the endothelium, which released NO from aortic endothelial cells.

Exercise training improves acetylcholine-induced endothelium-dependent hyperpolarization in type 2 diabetic rats, Otsuka Long-Evans Tokushima fatty rats

We investigated whether endothelium-derived relaxing (EDRF) and hyperpolarizing factor (EDHF) is impaired in type 2 diabetic rats (Otsuka Long-Evans Tokushima Fatty (OLETF) rat) and whether the exercise training improves impaired EDRF and EDHF. Diabetic rats were divided into the sedentary and exercise-trained groups at the age of 16 weeks. Long-Evans Tokushima Otsuka (LETO) rats were used as age-matched non-diabetic controls. EDRF as well as EDHF induced by acetylcholine in the presence of indomethacine and L-nitro N-arginine was significantly attenuated in the diabetic rats, and was further impaired with age. Exercise training significantly improved it. Both insulin resistance and abdominal fat accumulation were significantly greater in the diabetic rats, compared with the non-diabetic rats, but were decreased in exercise-trained rats. Urinary NO(2) secretion was decrease in the diabetic rats at each age, and it was improved by exercise training. The results of the study indicated that exercise training prevented impairment of EDHF, as well as EDRF in type 2 diabetic rats, presumably due to improvement of hyperglycemia and insulin resistance and increase in the production of nitric oxide by exercise training.

Effect of eicosapentaenoic acid ethyl ester v. oleic acid-rich safflower oil on insulin resistance in type 2 diabetic model rats with hypertriacylglycerolaemia

The purpose of the present study was to test whether hyperlipidaemia and insulin resistance in type 2 diabetic Otsuka Long-Evans Tokushima Fatty (OLETF) rats can be improved by dietary supplementation with purified eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) or oleic acid (OA). Male OLETF rats were fed powdered chow (510 g fat/kg) alone (n 8) or chow supplemented with 10 g EPA- (n 8) or OA- (n 8) rich oil/kg per d from 5 weeks until 30 weeks of age. An oral glucose tolerance test and hyperinsulinaemic euglycaemic clamp was performed at 25 and 30 weeks of age. EPA supplementation resulted in significantly (P<0.05) reduced plasma lipids, hepatic triacylglycerols, and abdominal fat deposits, and more efficient in vivo glucose disposal compared with OA supplementation and no supplementation. OA supplementation was associated with significantly increased insulin response to oral glucose compared with EPA supplementation and no supplementation. Inverse correlation was noted between glucose uptake and plasma triacylglycerol levels (r -086, P<0.001) and abdominal fat volume (r -0.80, P<0.001). The result of oral glucose tolerance test study showed that the rats fed EPA tended to improve glucose intolerance, although this was not statistically significant. Levels of plasma insulin at 60 min after glucose was significantly increased in rats fed OA compared with the other two groups. The results indicate that long-term feeding of EPA might be effective in preventing insulin resistance in diabetes-prone rats, at least in part, due to improving hypertriacylglycerolaemia.

INVOLVEMENT OF CA2+ -ACTIVATED K+ CHANNELS IN GINSENOSIDES-INDUCED AORTIC RELAXATION IN RATS

Ginsenosides (GS), an extract of Panax ginseng, have been reported to be effective in inducing vascular relaxation mediated by nitric oxide (NO) release. The present experiments were designed to determine whether this GS-induced vasorelaxation also involves Ca2+-activated K+ (KCa) channels in vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMC) in addition to endothelium-derived NO. GS induced vasorelaxation in rat aortic rings, which had been precontracted with phenylephrine, in a concentration-dependent manner. This GS-induced relaxation was partially reversed by tetraethylammonium (TEA), an inhibitor of KCa channels; methylene blue (MB), an inhibitor of soluble guanylate cyclase; as well as Nω-nitro-L-arginine (L-NNA), but not by glybenclamide. In cultured VSMC and endothelial cells, KCa channels were activated by GS. This action was abolished by TEA, but was not blocked by glybenclamide. In addition, the GS-induced activity of KCa channels was partially inhibited by MB or H-8. These results indicate that the activation of KCa channels involved, at least in part, the GS-induced vasorelaxation of rat aorta.

Estrogen modulates a large conductance chloride channel in cultured porcine aortic endothelial cells.

Estrogen is known to exert a protective effect on cardiovascular disease, but the mechanism for this effect is unclear. It has, however, been reported that estrogen and antiestrogen modify ionic currents and membrane potential in various cells. The aim of this study was to clarify whether the chloride channel of aortic endothelial cells was, in fact, modified by estrogen and antiestrogen with inside-out patch and cell-attached patch recording methods. Tamoxifen activated a large-conductance (368 +/- 23 pS, n = 6, in symmetric 150 mM Cl- solution) chloride channel of endothelial cells grown in the presence of 1 microg/ml colchicine. The channels were activated mainly between +/-40 mV, but were inactivated at more extreme potentials. The open probability of channels in cell-attached patches increased from <0.01 to 0.37 +/- 0.08 (n = 8) when cells were treated with 15 microM tamoxifen. This effect can be blocked by 17beta-estradiol, but not by progesterone. The results showed that tamoxifen increased chloride channel activity in the presence of colchicine in cultured endothelial cells, and this action was suppressed by 17beta-estradiol but not by progesterone. This rapid effect by estrogens suggests that these hormones exert nongenomic, short-term activity and do not appear to affect the nuclear estrogen receptor. With these effects, estrogen and antiestrogen bind to the endothelial cells plasma membrane site and subsequently may activate an intracellular second messenger pathway.

Cilnidipine Improves Insulin Sensitivity in the Otsuka Long-Evans Tokushima Fatty Rat, a Model of Spontaneous NIDDM

Summary. Among the antihypertensive drugs, fast-acting Ca2+ antagonists have been reported to worsen insulin sensitivity. This effect may be attributable to reflex increases in sympathetic activity. On the other hand, however, it has been reported that long-acting, dihydropiridine Ca2+ antagonists improve insulin-resistance. The purpose of this study was to investigate whether cilnidipine, another long-acting dihydropidine Ca2+ antagonist, improves insulin sensitivity in Otsuka Long-Evans Tokushima Fatty (OLETF) rat, a model of spontaneous NIDDM. 25 weeks OLETF rats were divided into the following groups; normal-diet group, cilnidipine-supplemented group (cilnidipine 3mg/kg/day) and angiotensin II receptor antagonist CS-866-supplemented group (CS-866 1mg/kg/day). As a non-diabetic control, we used Long-Evans-Tokushima-Otsuka rats (non-diabetic rats). Glucose infusion rate (GIR), an index of insulin resistance, as measured by the hyperinsulinemic euglycemic clamp technique was significantly decreased in OLETF rats. Cilnidipine-treatment partially but significantly improved insulin sensitivity in addition to systolic blood pressure in OLETF rats at 30 weeks of age, although it did not decrease accumulation of abdominal fat or serum levels of glucose or insulin. CS-866, an angiotensin 2 receptor antagonist, which lowers blood pressure through a different mechanism, did not improve insulin resistant states in OLETF rats. These results suggest that cilnidipine has a beneficial effect on insulin-resistance together with the antihypertensive effect.

Induction of inducible nitric oxide synthase by ginsenosides in cultured porcine endothelial cells.

Mechanism of Nitric oxide (NO) production by ginsenosides was investigated in cultured porcine endothelial cells. Beta-nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate (beta-NADPH) staining showed that the NO production was significantly enhanced by the presence of 40 microg/ml ginsenosides with 10 microM L-arginine after 12 h incubation. NO production was suppressed by addition of 0.5 microM Nomega-Nitro-L-arginine (L-NNA), an inhibitor of NO synthases (NOSs), to the incubation medium. In addition, the immunoreactive signals of inducible NOS (iNOS) were appeared in endothelial cells after 12-h incubation of ginsenosides, whereas the signals were not observed in non-treated cells. Our findings suggest that ginsenosides can enhance NO production by induction of iNOS in addition to its direct effect on endothelial cells by increasing intracellular Ca2+ concentration.

Cilostazol, a phosphodiesterase inhibitor, improves insulin sensitivity in the Otsuka Long-Evans Tokushima Fatty Rat, a model of spontaneous NIDDM.

Aim: Angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitors and α1‐adrenergic blockers improve insulin sensitivity, the mechanism of which was considered, at least in part, to be due to the increased blood flow to muscle. The present study aimed to clarify whether cilostazol, a phosphodiesterase inhibitor, improves insulin sensitivity in a model of spontaneous non‐insulin dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM), Otsuka Long‐Evans Tokushima Fatty (OLETF) rat.