Energy restriction prevents the development of type 2 diabetes in Zucker diabetic fatty rats: coordinated patterns of gene expression for energy metabolism in insulin-sensitive tissues and pancreatic islets determined by oligonucleotide microarray analysis.

Energy restriction (ER) causes metabolic improvement in the prediabetic and diabetic state. Little information exists on the mechanism of action of ER, for example, on the changes at the transcriptional gene level in insulin-sensitive tissues. To gain further insight, we have investigated changes in gene expressions in skeletal muscle, liver, fat, and pancreatic islets after ER in male Zucker diabetic fatty rats. Eighteen Zucker diabetic fatty rats were divided at the age of 7 weeks into a control group (ad libitum diet) and an ER group (30% ER compared with the control group). Blood glucose, weight, and food intake were measured weekly. After 5 weeks, blood samples, and skeletal muscle, liver, visceral fat (epididymal fat pads), and islets tissue were collected. Gene expression was quantified with high-density oligonucleotide, microarray GeneChip technology. ER ameliorated the development of hyperglycemia, increased the levels of plasma insulin, and reduced plasma total cholesterol and the glucagon-insulin ratio (P < .05). In skeletal muscle, the expression of 55 genes increased and 245 decreased involving genes related to glucose metabolism (eg, phosphorylase kinase, pyruvate dehydrogenase kinase 4), lipid metabolism (eg, carnitine palmitoyltransferase 1, fatty acid transporter), and signaling pathways (eg, mitogen-activated protein kinases, protein kinase C). In the liver, the expression of 123 genes increased and 103 decreased involving genes related primarily to lipid metabolism. In pancreatic islets, the expression of 110 genes increased and that of 127 decreased, whereas in visceral fat, the expression of 279 genes increased and that of 528 decreased. ER counteracts the development of diabetes and causes changes in the expression of multiple genes involved in glucose and lipid metabolism in skeletal muscle, liver, and pancreatic islets, which may play an important role for the prevention of diabetes.