Time course of effects of ovarian hormones on food intake and metabolism.

The effects of administration of estradiol benzoate (EB) or EB plus progesterone (EB + Prog) on feeding behavior and lipid metabolism were examined in ovariectomized rats killed 1, 2, 3, 7, or 14 days after the onset of hormone treatment. EB caused a transient decrease in food intake and body weight gain and a sustained decrease in adipose tissue lipoprotein lipase activity, and progesterone attenuated this EB effect. Hepatic acetyl CoA carboxylase (ACC) and fatty acid synthetase (FAS) activities decreased in the first days of hormone treatment (both EB and EB + Prog treatments) and returned to normal at 1 wk in both treatment groups. At 2 wk, hepatic ACC and FAS activities were greatly elevated in the EB, but not the EB + Prog group. These data demonstrate the complexity of the patterns of behavioral and metabolic responses after ovarian hormone manipulation in adult female rats.