Metabolic differences in hepatocytes of obese and lean pigs

• Published in: Animal (Cambridge, England) England), 2014-11, Vol.8 (11), p.1873-1880
• Main Authors: González-Valero, L., Rodríguez-López, J. M., Lachica, M., Fernández-Fígares, I.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: 3-hydroxybutyric acid; Adiposity; albumins; ammonia; amphotericin B; Animals; beta-mercaptoethanol; Body Weight; Breeding; collagenase; conjugated linoleic acid; degradation; dexamethasone; dimethyl sulfoxide; energy; energy metabolism; esterification; fetal bovine serum; free fatty acids; genetic background; gentamicin; glucagon; gluconeogenesis; glutamine; glycogen; hepatocytes; Hepatocytes - metabolism; Iberian (swine breed); insulin; insulin-like growth factor I; landraces; liver function; metabolism; penicillins; Physiology and functional biology of systems; pig; Research Article; streptomycin; Sus scrofa - genetics; Sus scrofa - metabolism; swine; triacylglycerols; urea
• ISSN: 1751-7311; 1751-732X; 1751-732X
• DOI: 10.1017/S1751731114001748

There are important differences in terms of metabolic activity, energy utilization and capacity of protein and fat deposition when Iberian and modern pigs are compared. Primary culture of hepatocytes was used to evaluate hepatic function and sensitivity to hormones between breeds without the interference of circulating blood factors. Hepatocytes were isolated from pure Iberian (n=10) and Landrace (n=8) pigs of similar BW (24.5±12.1 and 32.9±6.1 kg BW, respectively), by collagenase perfusion. Monolayers were established in medium containing fetal bovine serum for 1 day and switched to serum-free medium for the remainder of the culture period. Hepatocytes were maintained in William’s E supplemented with β-mercaptoethanol (0.1 mM), glutamine (2 mM), antibiotics (gentamicin, penicillin, streptomycin and amphotericin B), dimethyl sulfoxide (1 µg/ml), dexamethasone (10−8 M), insulin (0.173 and 17.3 nM) and glucagon (0.287, 2.87 and 28.7 nM) for 24 to 48 h. Gluconeogenesis (GNG), glycogen degradation, triglycerides (TG) content and esterification, β-hydroxybutyrate (BHB) synthesis, IGF-1 synthesis, albumin and urea synthesis were determined. Iberian pigs had greater capacity of GNG than Landrace (24%, P0.10). TG content and esterification tended to be lower in hepatocytes from Iberian compared with Landrace pigs (12% and 31%, respectively; 0.10