The effects of eating a traditional high fat/high carbohydrate or a ketogenic diet on sensitivity of female rats to morphine

• Published in: The Journal of pharmacology and experimental therapeutics 2024-10, Vol.391 (1), p.30-38
• Main Authors: Beltran, Nina M, Parra, Alyssa N, Serrano, Ana Paulina, Castillo, Jazmin, Castro, Isabella, Elsey, Madeline K, Minervini, Vanessa, Serafine, Katherine M
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• ISSN: 0022-3565; 1521-0103; 1521-0103
• DOI: 10.1124/jpet.124.002188

Patients diagnosed with obesity are prescribed opioid medications at a higher rate than the general population; however, it is not known if eating a high fat diet might impact individual sensitivity to these medications. To explore the hypothesis that eating a high fat diet increases sensitivity of rats to the effects of morphine, 24 female Sprague-Dawley rats (n=8/diet) ate either a standard laboratory chow (17% kcal from fat), a high fat/low carbohydrate (ketogenic) chow (90.5% kcal from fat), or a traditional high fat/high carbohydrate chow (60% kcal from fat). Morphine-induced antinociception was assessed using a warm water tail withdrawal procedure, during which latency (in seconds) for rats to remove their tail from warm water baths was recorded following saline or morphine (0.32-56 mg/kg, IP) injections. Morphine was administered acutely and chronically, which involved 19 days of twice daily injections (increasing in 1/4 log dose increments every 3 days: 3.2-56 mg/kg, IP) to induce dependence and assess tolerance. The adverse effects of morphine (i.e., tolerance, withdrawal, changes in body temperature) were assessed throughout the study. Morphine induced comparable antinociception in rats eating different diets, and all rats developed tolerance following chronic morphine exposure. Additional adverse effects of morphine were also comparable among rats eating different diets; however, withdrawal-induced weight loss was less severe for rats eating ketogenic chow. These results suggest that dietary manipulation might modulate the severity of withdrawal-related weight loss, in ways that could be relevant for patients. The present study in female rats suggests that eating a high fat/low carbohydrate (ketogenic) or a traditional high fat/high carbohydrate diet does not impact the pain-relieving or adverse effects of opioids (i.e., tolerance or withdrawal). However, eating a ketogenic diet may have beneficial effects on opioid withdrawal-related weight loss. Individuals diagnosed with obesity taking opioids for pain-related conditions might therefore consider adopting a ketogenic diet when opioid administration is discontinued to potentially mitigate withdrawal-related weight loss.