Effects of gastric bypass surgery on postprandial gut and systemic lipid handling.

BACKGROUND & OBJECTIVES: Obesity is often associated with increased postprandial triglyceride (TG) concentrations, mainly from chylomicrons- and VLDL-TG. These alterations are usually reverted to normal after gastric bypass surgery (GB), through mechanisms which remain unknown. The objective of this study was therefore to assess the contribution of exogenous labelled fatty acids ingested with a meal to postprandial blood chylomicrons and VLDL-TG concentrations after GB. SUBJECTS/METHODS: 7 GB patients 3-5 years after surgery (GB: 2M/5F, mean BMI 30 ± 2 kg/m2, mean age 40 ± 3 years), 6 overweight non operated subjects (OW: 1M/5F, mean BMI 31 ± 3 kg/m2, mean age 38 ± 2 years) and 8 normal weight healthy subjects (NW: 4M/4F, mean BMI 22 ± 1 kg/m2, mean age 26 ± 4 years) were studied over 7 h following ingestion of a liquid meal containing 18 g fat labelled with 250 mg 13C16 palmitate, 22 g protein, 36 g fructose and 36 g glucose. TG, 13C palmitate (13C-palm) and apoB48 concentrations were measured hourly in whole plasma and/or in chylomicrons and VLDL lipoprotein sub-fractions. RESULTS: OW subjects had higher chylomicron-than NW (chylo-TG 96.5 (23.1) vs 28.8 (11.8) mmol/l*420min (p = 0.02)), but similar total, chylo-13C-palm and apoB48 iAUCs. In GB, chylo- 13C-palm and apoB48 increased earlier after meal ingestion, but then remained lower than in NW and OW throughout the postprandial period. GB also had lower chylo-TG iAUCs than OW (8.9 (11.5) vs 96.5 (23.2) mmol/l*420min, p = 0.003). Their apoB48 iAUCs were not different from NW and OW (509.2 (90.5) vs 710.2 (80.5) and 870.1 (297.6) pg/ml*420min, all p > 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: An accelerated postprandial apoB48 rise, together with unchanged postprandial apoB48 iUAC, suggests that intestinal fat absorption and chylomicron secretion was quantitatively unaltered, but accelerated after gastric bypass. In contrast, the decreased postprandial chylo-TG and 13C-palm iAUCs suggest that plasma chylomicron clearance was enhanced after gastric bypass.

The thermogenic responses to overfeeding and cold are differentially regulated.

OBJECTIVE: Brown adipose tissue (BAT) is a highly metabolic tissue that generates heat and is negatively associated with obesity. BAT has been proposed to mediate both cold-induced thermogenesis (CIT) and diet-induced thermogenesis (DIT). Therefore, it was investigated whether there is a relationship between CIT and DIT in humans. METHODS: Nine healthy men (23 ± 3 years old, 23.0 ± 1.8 kg m(-2) ) completed 20 min of cold exposure (4°C) 5 days per week for 4 weeks. Before and after the intervention, CIT (the increase in resting metabolic rate at 16°C relative to 22°C) was measured by a ventilated hood indirect calorimeter, whereas DIT was measured as the 24-h thermic response to 1 day of 50% overfeeding (TEF150% ) in a respiratory chamber. RESULTS: After the cold intervention, CIT more than doubled from 5.2% ± 14.2% at baseline to 12.0% ± 11.1% (P = 0.05), in parallel with increased sympathetic nervous system activity. However, 24-h energy expenditure (2,166 ± 206 vs. 2,118 ± 188 kcal day(-1) ; P = 0.15) and TEF150% (7.4% ± 2.7% vs. 7.7% ± 1.6%; P = 0.78) were unchanged. Moreover, there was no association between CIT and TEF150% at baseline or post-intervention, nor in their changes (P ≥ 0.47). CONCLUSIONS: Cold acclimation resulted in increased CIT but not TEF150% . Therefore, it is likely that CIT and DIT are mediated by distinct regulatory mechanisms.

Exercise performed immediately after fructose ingestion enhances fructose oxidation and suppresses fructose storage.

BACKGROUND: Exercise prevents the adverse effects of a high-fructose diet through mechanisms that remain unknown. OBJECTIVE: We assessed the hypothesis that exercise prevents fructose-induced increases in very-low-density lipoprotein (VLDL) triglycerides by decreasing the fructose conversion into glucose and VLDL-triglyceride and fructose carbon storage into hepatic glycogen and lipids. DESIGN: Eight healthy men were studied on 3 occasions after 4 d consuming a weight-maintenance, high-fructose diet. On the fifth day, the men ingested an oral (13)C-labeled fructose load (0.75 g/kg), and their total fructose oxidation ((13)CO2 production), fructose storage (fructose ingestion minus (13)C-fructose oxidation), fructose conversion into blood (13)C glucose (gluconeogenesis from fructose), blood VLDL-(13)C palmitate (a marker of hepatic de novo lipogenesis), and lactate concentrations were monitored over 7 postprandial h. On one occasion, participants remained lying down throughout the experiment [fructose treatment alone with no exercise condition (NoEx)], and on the other 2 occasions, they performed a 60-min exercise either 75 min before fructose ingestion [exercise, then fructose condition (ExFru)] or 90 min after fructose ingestion [fructose, then exercise condition (FruEx)]. RESULTS: Fructose oxidation was significantly (P < 0.001) higher in the FruEx (80% ± 3% of ingested fructose) than in the ExFru (46% ± 1%) and NoEx (49% ± 1%). Consequently, fructose storage was lower in the FruEx than in the other 2 conditions (P < 0.001). Fructose conversion into blood (13)C glucose, VLDL-(13)C palmitate, and postprandial plasma lactate concentrations was not significantly different between conditions. CONCLUSIONS: Compared with sedentary conditions, exercise performed immediately after fructose ingestion increases fructose oxidation and decreases fructose storage. In contrast, exercise performed before fructose ingestion does not significantly alter fructose oxidation and storage. In both conditions, exercise did not abolish fructose conversion into glucose or its incorporation into VLDL triglycerides. This trial was registered at clinicaltrials.gov as NCT01866215.

Coffee consumption attenuates short-term fructose-induced liver insulin resistance in healthy men.

BACKGROUND: Epidemiologic and experimental data have suggested that chlorogenic acid, which is a polyphenol contained in green coffee beans, prevents diet-induced hepatic steatosis and insulin resistance. OBJECTIVE: We assessed whether the consumption of chlorogenic acid-rich coffee attenuates the effects of short-term fructose overfeeding, dietary conditions known to increase intrahepatocellular lipids (IHCLs), and blood triglyceride concentrations and to decrease hepatic insulin sensitivity in healthy humans. DESIGN: Effects of 3 different coffees were assessed in 10 healthy volunteers in a randomized, controlled, crossover trial. IHCLs, hepatic glucose production (HGP) (by 6,6-d2 glucose dilution), and fasting lipid oxidation were measured after 14 d of consumption of caffeinated coffee high in chlorogenic acid (C-HCA), decaffeinated coffee high in chlorogenic acid, or decaffeinated coffee with regular amounts of chlorogenic acid (D-RCA); during the last 6 d of the study, the weight-maintenance diet of subjects was supplemented with 4 g fructose · kg(-1) · d(-1) (total energy intake ± SD: 143 ± 1% of weight-maintenance requirements). All participants were also studied without coffee supplementation, either with 4 g fructose · kg(-1) · d(-1) (high fructose only) or without high fructose (control). RESULTS: Compared with the control diet, the high-fructose diet significantly increased IHCLs by 102 ± 36% and HGP by 16 ± 3% and decreased fasting lipid oxidation by 100 ± 29% (all P < 0.05). All 3 coffees significantly decreased HGP. Fasting lipid oxidation increased with C-HCA and D-RCA (P < 0.05). None of the 3 coffees significantly altered IHCLs. CONCLUSIONS: Coffee consumption attenuates hepatic insulin resistance but not the increase of IHCLs induced by fructose overfeeding. This effect does not appear to be mediated by differences in the caffeine or chlorogenic acid content. This trial was registered at clinicaltrials.gov as NCT00827450.

Lateral hypothalamic area deep brain stimulation for refractory obesity: a pilot study with preliminary data on safety, body weight, and energy metabolism.

OBJECT: Deep brain stimulation (DBS) of the lateral hypothalamic area (LHA) has been suggested as a potential treatment for intractable obesity. The authors present the 2-year safety results as well as early efficacy and metabolic effects in 3 patients undergoing bilateral LHA DBS in the first study of this approach in humans. METHODS: Three patients meeting strict criteria for intractable obesity, including failed bariatric surgery, underwent bilateral implantation of LHA DBS electrodes as part of an institutional review board- and FDA-approved pilot study. The primary focus of the study was safety; however, the authors also received approval to collect data on early efficacy including weight change and energy metabolism. RESULTS: No serious adverse effects, including detrimental psychological consequences, were observed with continuous LHA DBS after a mean follow-up of 35 months (range 30-39 months). Three-dimensional nonlinear transformation of postoperative imaging superimposed onto brain atlas anatomy was used to confirm and study DBS contact proximity to the LHA. No significant weight loss trends were seen when DBS was programmed using standard settings derived from movement disorder DBS surgery. However, promising weight loss trends have been observed when monopolar DBS stimulation has been applied via specific contacts found to increase the resting metabolic rate measured in a respiratory chamber. CONCLUSIONS: Deep brain stimulation of the LHA may be applied safely to humans with intractable obesity. Early evidence for some weight loss under metabolically optimized settings provides the first "proof of principle" for this novel antiobesity strategy. A larger follow-up study focused on efficacy along with a more rigorous metabolic analysis is planned to further explore the benefits and therapeutic mechanism behind this investigational therapy.

Novel strategy for the use of leptin for obesity therapy.

INTRODUCTION: Obesity is a chronic disease and a major global health challenge. Apart from bariatric surgery, which is costly and not without risk, there are currently no successful long-term treatment options for obesity. The history of pharmacological agents for obesity has been turbulent with many examples of drugs being removed from the market due to significant side effects. Orlistat and sibutramine (the latest drugs on the market) provide only modest weight loss and are both associated with high attrition rates due to intolerable side effects. Furthermore, sibutramine was recently withdrawn from the market. There is a need for the development of safe and efficacious drug treatments for obesity. AREAS COVERED: This review covers the history of leptin therapy as an orphan drug, leptin-replacement therapy as a treatment for obesity, preclinical studies showing the efficacy of leptin/amylin combination and finally, the very promising early clinical findings using pramlintide/meteleptin combination therapy in overweight to obese individuals. EXPERT OPINION: Combination pharmacological therapy, such as pramlintide/metreleptin, for the treatment of obesity is very promising and is supported by encouraging weight loss results and improvement in metabolic makers in early-phase clinical studies. However, the latest randomized clinical trial on pramlintide/metreleptin was recently stopped due to safety concerns.