Diurnal variations in food intake and in lipogenesis in mammary gland and liver of lactating rats.

Despite the hyperphagia, the food intake of the lactating rat showed marked diurnal changes which paralleled those of virgin rats. The major difference was that lactating rats consumed a higher proportion (35%) of their diet during the light period than did virgin rats (14%). The peak rate of lipogenesis in the lactating mammary gland occurred around midnight, and this decreased by 67% to reach a nadir around mid-afternoon; this corresponded with the period of lowest food intake. The diurnal variations in hepatic lipogenesis in lactating rats were much less marked. The changes in hepatic glycogen over 24 h suggest that it acts to supply carbon for lipogenesis during the period of decreased food intake. The activation state of acetyl-CoA carboxylase in mammary gland altered during 24 h, but the changes did not always correlate with alterations in the rate of lipogenesis. The changes in plasma insulin concentration tended to parallel the food intake in the lactating rats, but they did not appear to be sufficient to explain the large alterations in lipogenic rate in the mammary gland.