Regulation of metabolic health by dietary histidine in mice.

Low-protein (LP) diets are associated with a decreased risk of diabetes in humans, and promote leanness and glycaemic control in both rodents and humans. While the effects of an LP diet on glycaemic control are mediated by reduced levels of the branched-chain amino acids, we have observed that reducing dietary levels of the other six essential amino acids leads to changes in body composition. Here, we find that dietary histidine plays a key role in the response to an LP diet in male C57BL/6J mice. Specifically reducing dietary levels of histidine by 67% reduces the weight gain of young, lean male mice, reducing both adipose and lean mass without altering glucose metabolism, and rapidly reverses diet-induced obesity and hepatic steatosis in diet-induced obese male mice, increasing insulin sensitivity. This normalization of metabolic health was associated not with caloric restriction or increased activity, but with increased energy expenditure. Surprisingly, the effects of histidine restriction do not require the energy balance hormone Fgf21. Histidine restriction that was started in midlife promoted leanness and glucose tolerance in aged males but not females, but did not affect frailty or lifespan in either sex. Finally, we demonstrate that variation in dietary histidine levels helps to explain body mass index differences in humans. Overall, our findings demonstrate that dietary histidine is a key regulator of weight and body composition in male mice and in humans, and suggest that reducing dietary histidine may be a translatable option for the treatment of obesity. KEY POINTS: Protein restriction (PR) promotes metabolic health in rodents and humans and extends rodent lifespan. Restriction of specific individual essential amino acids can recapitulate the benefits of PR. Reduced histidine promotes leanness and increased energy expenditure in male mice. Reduced histidine does not extend the lifespan of mice when begun in midlife. Dietary levels of histidine are positively associated with body mass index in humans.

Intranasal administration of neuropeptide Y significantly antagonized stress-induced colonic dysmotility via central GABAA receptors in male rats.

Stress plays a major role in the pathogenesis of many diseases. Central neuropeptide Y (NPY) counteracts the biological actions of corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) and attenuates stress responses. Intracerebroventricular (ICV) administration of NPY significantly antagonized the inhibitory effects of chronic complicated stress (CCS) on gastrointestinal (GI) dysmotility in rats. However, ICV administration is an invasive technique. The effect of intranasal administration of NPY on the hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis and GI motility in CCS conditions have not been studied, and the inhibitory mechanism of NPY on CRF through the γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA)A receptor needs to be further investigated. A CCS rat model was set up, and NPY was intranasally administered every day before the stress loading. Furthermore, ICV administration of a GABAA receptor antagonist was performed daily. Hypothalamic CRF and NPY expressions were evaluated, serum corticosterone and NPY levels were analyzed, and colonic motor functions were assessed. CCS rats showed significantly increased CRF expression and corticosterone levels, which resulted in enhanced colonic motor functions. Intranasal NPY significantly increased hypothalamic NPY mRNA expression and reduced CRF mRNA expression and plasma corticosterone levels, helping to restore colonic motor functions. However, ICV administration of the GABAA receptor antagonist significantly abolished these effects induced by NPY. In conclusion, intranasal administration of NPY upregulates the hypothalamic NPY system. NPY may, through the GABAA receptor, significantly antagonize overexpressed central CRF and attenuate HPA axis activity in CCS conditions, influencing and helping to restore colonic motor function.

Presence of Irritable Bowel Syndrome Symptoms in Quiescent Inflammatory Bowel Disease Is Associated with High Rate of Anxiety and Depression.

BACKGROUND: Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD; Crohn's disease, CD and Ulcerative colitis, UC) and irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) have overlapping symptoms. Few prevalence studies of IBS in quiescent IBD have used colonoscopy with histology to confirm inactive disease. The aims were (1) to determine the percentage of IBD patients in deep remission whose persistent IBS-like symptoms (IBD/IBS+) would cause them to be classified as having active disease, based on the calculation of Harvey Bradshaw Index (HBI) or UC disease activity index (UCDAI); (2) to identify demographic and disease characteristics that are associated with IBD/IBS+. METHODS: This was a prospective study at a single tertiary care IBD center. 96/112 patients with colonoscopy and histology confirmed quiescent disease consented and completed Rome III criteria for IBS Survey, and the hospital anxiety and depression scale (HADS). Other demographic and disease specific data were collected. RESULTS: 36% (28/77) and 37% (7/19) of CD and UC patients, respectively, met diagnostic criteria for IBS. Significantly higher HBI/UCDAI scores (p = 0.005) and low short inflammatory bowel disease questionnaire (SIBDQ) scores (p ≤ 0.0001) were seen in IBD/IBS+ patients. 29% of patients in deep remission were mis-categorized by HBI/UCDAI as having active disease when they fulfilled Rome III criteria for IBS. Psychiatric diagnosis (OR 3.53 95% CI 1.2-10.2) and earlier onset of IBD (OR 1.056 95% CI 1.015-1.096) were associated with IBD/IBS+. Patients fulfilling IBS criteria had higher hospital anxiety and depression scale (HADS). CONCLUSION: IBD/IBS+ affect scoring of IBD disease activity scales and become less useful in guiding treatment plans.

Acarbose ameliorates Western diet-induced metabolic and cognitive impairments in the 3xTg mouse model of Alzheimer's disease.

Age is the greatest risk factor for Alzheimer's disease (AD) as well as for other disorders that increase the risk of AD such as diabetes and obesity. There is growing interest in determining if interventions that promote metabolic health can prevent or delay AD. Acarbose is an anti-diabetic drug that not only improves glucose homeostasis, but also extends the lifespan of wild-type mice. Here, we test the hypothesis that acarbose will not only preserve metabolic health, but also slow or prevent AD pathology and cognitive deficits in 3xTg mice, a model of AD, fed either a Control diet or a high-fat, high-sucrose Western diet (WD). We find that acarbose decreases the body weight and adiposity of WD-fed 3xTg mice, increasing energy expenditure while also stimulating food consumption, and improves glycemic control. Both male and female WD-fed 3xTg mice have worsened cognitive deficits than Control-fed mice, and these deficits are ameliorated by acarbose treatment. Molecular and histological analysis of tau and amyloid pathology identified sex-specific effects of acarbose which are uncoupled from the dramatic improvements in cognition, suggesting that the benefits of acarbose on AD are largely driven by improved metabolic health. In conclusion, our results suggest that acarbose may be a promising intervention to prevent, delay, or even treat AD, especially in individuals consuming a Western diet.

Late-life isoleucine restriction promotes physiological and molecular signatures of healthy aging.

In defiance of the paradigm that calories from all sources are equivalent, we and others have shown that dietary protein is a dominant regulator of healthy aging. The restriction of protein or the branched-chain amino acid isoleucine promotes healthspan and extends lifespan when initiated in young or adult mice. However, many interventions are less efficacious or even deleterious when initiated in aged animals. Here, we investigate the physiological, metabolic, and molecular consequences of consuming a diet with a 67% reduction of all amino acids (Low AA), or of isoleucine alone (Low Ile), in male and female C57BL/6J.Nia mice starting at 20 months of age. We find that both diet regimens effectively reduce adiposity and improve glucose tolerance, which were benefits that were not mediated by reduced calorie intake. Both diets improve specific aspects of frailty, slow multiple molecular indicators of aging rate, and rejuvenate the aging heart and liver at the molecular level. These results demonstrate that Low AA and Low Ile diets can drive youthful physiological and molecular signatures, and support the possibility that these dietary interventions could help to promote healthy aging in older adults.

Dietary isoleucine content defines the metabolic and molecular response to a Western diet.

The amino acid composition of the diet has recently emerged as a critical regulator of metabolic health. Consumption of the branched-chain amino acid isoleucine is positively correlated with body mass index in humans, and reducing dietary levels of isoleucine rapidly improves the metabolic health of diet-induced obese male C57BL/6J mice. However, it is unknown how sex, strain, and dietary isoleucine intake may interact to impact the response to a Western Diet (WD). Here, we find that although the magnitude of the effect varies by sex and strain, reducing dietary levels of isoleucine protects C57BL/6J and DBA/2J mice of both sexes from the deleterious metabolic effects of a WD, while increasing dietary levels of isoleucine impairs aspects of metabolic health. Despite broadly positive responses across all sexes and strains to reduced isoleucine, the molecular response of each sex and strain is highly distinctive. Using a multi-omics approach, we identify a core sex- and strain- independent molecular response to dietary isoleucine, and identify mega-clusters of differentially expressed hepatic genes, metabolites, and lipids associated with each phenotype. Intriguingly, the metabolic effects of reduced isoleucine in mice are not associated with FGF21 - and we find that in humans plasma FGF21 levels are likewise not associated with dietary levels of isoleucine. Finally, we find that foods contain a range of isoleucine levels, and that consumption of dietary isoleucine is lower in humans with healthy eating habits. Our results demonstrate that the dietary level of isoleucine is critical in the metabolic and molecular response to a WD, and suggest that lowering dietary levels of isoleucine may be an innovative and translatable strategy to protect from the negative metabolic consequences of a WD.

Protein restriction slows the development and progression of pathology in a mouse model of Alzheimer's disease.

Dietary protein is a critical regulator of metabolic health and aging. Low protein diets are associated with healthy aging in humans, and dietary protein restriction extends the lifespan and healthspan of mice. In this study, we examined the effect of protein restriction (PR) on metabolic health and the development and progression of Alzheimer's disease (AD) in the 3xTg mouse model of AD. Here, we show that PR promotes leanness and glycemic control in 3xTg mice, specifically rescuing the glucose intolerance of 3xTg females. PR induces sex-specific alterations in circulating and brain metabolites, downregulating sphingolipid subclasses in 3xTg females. PR also reduces AD pathology and mTORC1 activity, increases autophagy, and improves the cognition of 3xTg mice. Finally, PR improves the survival of 3xTg mice. Our results suggest that PR or pharmaceutical interventions that mimic the effects of this diet may hold promise as a treatment for AD.

Dietary restriction of individual amino acids stimulates unique molecular responses in mouse liver.

Dietary protein and essential amino acid (EAA) restriction promotes favorable metabolic reprogramming, ultimately resulting in improvements to both health and lifespan. However, as individual EAAs have distinct catabolites and engage diverse downstream signaling pathways, it remains unclear to what extent shared or AA-specific molecular mechanisms promote diet-associated phenotypes. Here, we investigated the physiological and molecular effects of restricting either dietary methionine, leucine, or isoleucine (Met-R, Leu-R, and Ile-R) for 3 weeks in C57BL/6J male mice. While all 3 AA-depleted diets promoted fat and lean mass loss and slightly improved glucose tolerance, the molecular responses were more diverse; while hepatic metabolites altered by Met-R and Leu-R were highly similar, Ile-R led to dramatic changes in metabolites, including a 3-fold reduction in the oncometabolite 2-hydroxyglutarate. Pathways regulated in an EAA-specific manner included glycolysis, the pentose phosphate pathway (PPP), nucleotide metabolism, the TCA cycle and amino acid metabolism. Transcriptiome analysis and global profiling of histone post-translational modifications (PTMs) revealed different patterns of responses to each diet, although Met-R and Leu-R again shared similar transcriptional responses. While the pattern of global histone PTMs were largely unique for each dietary intervention, Met-R and Ile-R had similar changes in histone-3 methylation/acetylation PTMs at lysine-9. Few similarities were observed between the physiological or molecular responses to EAA restriction and treatment with rapamycin, an inhibitor of the mTORC1 AA-responsive protein kinase, indicating the response to EAA restriction may be largely independent of mTORC1. Together, these results demonstrate that dietary restriction of individual EAAs has unique, EAA-specific effects on the hepatic metabolome, epigenome, and transcriptome, and suggests that the specific EAAs present in dietary protein may play a key role at regulating health at the molecular level.

Protein restriction slows the development and progression of Alzheimer's disease in mice.

Over the last decade, it has become evident that dietary protein is a critical regulator of metabolic health and aging. Low protein diets are associated with healthy aging in humans, and we and others have shown that dietary protein restriction (PR) extends the lifespan and healthspan of mice. Here, we examined the effect of PR on metabolic health and the development and progression of Alzheimer's disease (AD) in the 3xTg mouse model of AD. We found that PR has metabolic benefits for 3xTg mice and non-transgenic controls of both sexes, promoting leanness and glycemic control in 3xTg mice. We found that PR induces sex-specific alterations in circulating metabolites and in the brain lipidome, downregulating sphingolipid subclasses including ceramides, glucosylceramides, and sphingomyelins in 3xTg females. Consumption of a PR diet starting at 6 months of age reduced AD pathology in conjunction with reduced mTORC1 activity, increased autophagy, and had cognitive benefits for 3xTg mice. Finally, PR improved the survival of 3xTg mice. Our results demonstrate that PR slows the progression of AD at molecular and pathological levels, preserves cognition in this mouse model of AD, and suggests that PR or pharmaceutical interventions that mimic the effects of this diet may hold promise as a treatment for AD.

Dietary restriction of isoleucine increases healthspan and lifespan of genetically heterogeneous mice.

Low-protein diets promote health and longevity in diverse species. Restriction of the branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs) leucine, isoleucine, and valine recapitulates many of these benefits in young C57BL/6J mice. Restriction of dietary isoleucine (IleR) is sufficient to promote metabolic health and is required for many benefits of a low-protein diet in C57BL/6J males. Here, we test the hypothesis that IleR will promote healthy aging in genetically heterogeneous adult UM-HET3 mice. We find that IleR improves metabolic health in young and old HET3 mice, promoting leanness and glycemic control in both sexes, and reprograms hepatic metabolism in a sex-specific manner. IleR reduces frailty and extends the lifespan of male and female mice, but to a greater degree in males. Our results demonstrate that IleR increases healthspan and longevity in genetically diverse mice and suggests that IleR, or pharmaceuticals that mimic this effect, may have potential as a geroprotective intervention.

Impaired adaptation of gastrointestinal motility following chronic stress in maternally separated rats.

Exposure to early life stress causes increased stress responsiveness and permanent changes in the central nervous system. We recently showed that delayed gastric emptying (GE) and accelerated colonic transit (CT) in response to acute restraint stress (ARS) were completely restored following chronic homotypic stress (CHS) in rats via upregulation of hypothalamic oxytocin (OXT) expression. However, it is unknown whether early life stress affects hypothalamic OXT circuits and gastrointestinal motor function. Neonatal rats were subjected to maternal separation (MS) for 180 min/day for 2 wk. Anxiety-like behaviors were evaluated by the elevated-plus-maze test. GE and CT were measured under nonstressed (NS), ARS, and CHS conditions. Expression of corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) and OXT in the paraventricular nucleus (PVN) of the hypothalamus was evaluated by real time RT-PCR and immunohistochemistry. MS increased anxiety-like behaviors. ARS delayed GE and accelerated CT in control and MS rats. After CHS, delayed GE and accelerated CT were restored in control, but not MS, rats. CRF mRNA expression was significantly increased in response to ARS in control and MS rats. Increased CRF mRNA expression was still observed following CHS in MS, but not control, rats. In response to CHS, OXT mRNA expression was significantly increased in control, but not MS, rats. The number of OXT-immunoreactive cells was increased following CHS in the magnocellular part of the PVN in control, but not MS, rats. MS impairs the adaptation response of gastrointestinal motility following CHS. The mechanism of the impaired adaptation involves downregulation of OXT and upregulation of CRF in the hypothalamus in MS rats.

Hypothalamic circuit regulating colonic transit following chronic stress in rats.

Although acute stress accelerates colonic transit, the effect of chronic stress on colonic transit remains unclear. In this study, rats received repeated restraint stress (chronic homotypic stress) or various types of stress (chronic heterotypic stress) for 5 and 7 days, respectively. Vehicle saline, oxytocin (OXT), OXT receptor antagonist or corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) receptor antagonists were administered by intracerebroventricular (ICV) injection prior to restraint stress for 90 min. Immediately after the stress exposure, the entire colon was removed and the geometric center (GC) of Na51CrO4 (a nonabsorbable radioactive marker; 0.5 µCi) distribution was calculated to measure the transit. Gene expression of OXT and CRF in the paraventricular nucleus (PVN) was evaluated by in situ hybridization. Accelerated colonic transit with the acute stressor was no longer observed following chronic homotypic stress. This restored colonic transit was reversed by ICV injection of an OXT antagonist. In contrast, chronic heterotypic stress significantly accelerated colonic transit, which was attenuated by ICV injection of OXT and by a CRF receptor 1 antagonist. OXT mRNA expression in the PVN was significantly increased following chronic homotypic stress, but not chronic heterotypic stress. However, CRF mRNA expression in the PVN was significantly increased following acute and chronic heterotypic stress, but not chronic homotypic stress. These results indicate that central OXT and CRF play a pivotal role in mediating the colonic dysmotility following chronic stress in rats.

Anti-stress effects of transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) on colonic motility in rats.

BACKGROUND: Disorders of colonic motility may contribute to symptoms in patients with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), and stress is widely believed to play a major role in developing IBS. Stress increases corticotropin releasing factor (CRF) of the hypothalamus, resulting in acceleration of colonic transit in rodents. In contrast, hypothalamic oxytocin (OXT) has an anti-stress effect via inhibiting CRF expression and hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis activity. Although transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) and acupuncture have been shown to have anti-stress effects, the mechanism of the beneficial effects remains unknown. AIMS: We tested the hypothesis that TENS upregulates hypothalamic OXT expression resulting in reduced CRF expression and restoration of colonic dysmotility in response to chronic stress. METHODS: Male SD rats received different types of stressors for seven consecutive days (chronic heterotypic stress). TENS was applied to the bilateral hind limbs every other day before stress loading. Another group of rats did not receive TENS treatment. RESULTS: TENS significantly attenuated accelerated colonic transit induced by chronic heterotypic stress, which was antagonized by a central injection of an OXT antagonist. Immunohistochemical study showed that TENS increased OXT expression and decreased CRF expression at the paraventricular nucleus (PVN) following chronic heterotypic stress. CONCLUSIONS: It is suggested that TENS upregulates hypothalamic OXT expression which acts as an anti-stressor agent and mediates restored colonic dysmotility following chronic stress. TENS may be useful to treat gastrointestinal symptoms associated with stress.

Stroke Network of Wisconsin (SNOW) Scale Predicts Large Vessel Occlusion Stroke in the Prehospital Setting.

Purpose: In previous trials, the Stroke Network of Wisconsin (SNOW) scale accurately predicted large vessel occlusion (LVO) stroke in the hospital setting. This study evaluated SNOW scale performance in the prehospital setting and its ability to predict LVO or distal medium vessel occlusion (DMVO) in patients suspected of having acute ischemic stroke (AIS), a scenario in which transport time to an endovascular treatment-capable facility (ECSC) is critical. Methods: All potential AIS patients with last-known-well time of ≤24 hours were assessed by Milwaukee County Emergency Medical Services for LVO using SNOW. Patients with a positive SNOW score were transferred to the nearest ECSC. One such facility, Aurora St. Luke's Medical Center (ASLMC), was the source of all patient data analyzed in this study. LVO was defined as occlusion of the intracranial carotid artery, middle cerebral artery (M1) segment, or basilar artery. Results: From March 2018 to February 2019, 345 AIS-suspected patients were transported to ASLMC; 19 patients were excluded because no vascular imaging was performed. Of 326 patients, 32 had confirmed LVO and 21 DMVO. For identifying LVO, SNOW scale sensitivity was 0.88, specificity 0.40, positive predictive value (PPV) 0.14, negative predictive value (NPV) 0.97, and area under the curve (AUC) 0.64. Ability to predict DMVO was similar. Overall, the SNOW scale showed sensitivity of 0.83, specificity of 0.39, PPV of 0.10, NPV of 0.97, and AUC of 0.60 in identifying candidates for endovascular thrombectomy. Conclusions: In a prehospital setting, the SNOW scale has high sensitivity in identifying candidates for endovascular thrombectomy and proved highly reliable in ruling out stroke due to LVO.

FGF21 has a sex-specific role in calorie-restriction-induced beiging of white adipose tissue in mice.

Calorie restriction (CR) promotes healthspan and extends the lifespan of diverse organisms, including mice, and there is intense interest in understanding the molecular mechanisms by which CR functions. Some studies have demonstrated that CR induces fibroblast growth factor 21 (FGF21), a hormone that regulates energy balance and that when overexpressed, promotes metabolic health and longevity in mice, but the role of FGF21 in the response to CR has not been fully investigated. We directly examined the role of FGF21 in the physiological and metabolic response to a CR diet by feeding Fgf21-/- and wild-type control mice either ad libitum (AL) diet or a 30% CR diet for 15 weeks. Here, we find that FGF21 is largely dispensable for CR-induced improvements in body composition and energy balance, but that lack of Fgf21 blunts CR-induced changes aspects of glucose regulation and insulin sensitivity in females. Surprisingly, despite not affecting CR-induced changes in energy expenditure, loss of Fgf21 significantly blunts CR-induced beiging of white adipose tissue in male but not female mice. Our results shed new light on the molecular mechanisms involved in the beneficial effects of a CR diet, clarify that FGF21 is largely dispensable for the metabolic effects of a CR diet, and highlight a sex-dependent role for FGF21 in the molecular adaptation of white adipose tissue to CR.

Sex and genetic background define the metabolic, physiologic, and molecular response to protein restriction.

Low-protein diets promote metabolic health in humans and rodents. Despite evidence that sex and genetic background are key factors in the response to diet, most protein intake studies examine only a single strain and sex of mice. Using multiple strains and both sexes of mice, we find that improvements in metabolic health in response to reduced dietary protein strongly depend on sex and strain. While some phenotypes were conserved across strains and sexes, including increased glucose tolerance and energy expenditure, we observed high variability in adiposity, insulin sensitivity, and circulating hormones. Using a multi-omics approach, we identified mega-clusters of differentially expressed hepatic genes, metabolites, and lipids associated with each phenotype, providing molecular insight into the differential response to protein restriction. Our results highlight the importance of sex and genetic background in the response to dietary protein level, and the potential importance of a personalized medicine approach to dietary interventions.

The regulation of healthspan and lifespan by dietary amino acids.

As a key macronutrient and source of essential macromolecules, dietary protein plays a significant role in health. For many years, protein-rich diets have been recommended as healthy due to the satiety-inducing and muscle-building effects of protein, as well as the ability of protein calories to displace allegedly unhealthy calories from fats and carbohydrates. However, clinical studies find that consumption of dietary protein is associated with an increased risk of multiple diseases, especially diabetes, while studies in rodents have demonstrated that protein restriction can promote metabolic health and even lifespan. Emerging evidence suggests that the effects of dietary protein on health and longevity are not mediated simply by protein quantity but are instead mediated by protein quality - the specific amino acid composition of the diet. Here, we discuss how dietary protein and specific amino acids including methionine, the branched chain amino acids (leucine, isoleucine, and valine), tryptophan and glycine regulate metabolic health, healthspan, and aging, with attention to the specific molecular mechanisms that may participate in these effects. Finally, we discuss the potential applicability of these findings to promoting healthy aging in humans.

Hypothalamic oxytocin mediates adaptation mechanism against chronic stress in rats.

Accumulation of continuous life stress (chronic stress) often causes gastric symptoms. Although central oxytocin has antistress effects, the role of central oxytocin in stress-induced gastric dysmotility remains unknown. Solid gastric emptying was measured in rats receiving acute restraint stress, 5 consecutive days of repeated restraint stress (chronic homotypic stress), and 7 consecutive days of varying types of stress (chronic heterotypic stress). Oxytocin and oxytocin receptor antagonist were administered intracerebroventricularly (icv). Expression of corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) mRNA and oxytocin mRNA in the paraventricular nucleus (PVN) of the hypothalamus was evaluated by real-time RT-PCR. The changes of oxytocinergic neurons in the PVN were evaluated by immunohistochemistry. Acute stress delayed gastric emptying, and the delayed gastric emptying was completely restored after 5 consecutive days of chronic homotypic stress. In contrast, delayed gastric emptying persisted following chronic heterotypic stress. The restored gastric emptying following chronic homotypic stress was antagonized by icv injection of an oxytocin antagonist. Icv injection of oxytocin restored delayed gastric emptying induced by chronic heterotypic stress. CRF mRNA expression, which was significantly increased in response to acute stress and chronic heterotypic stress, returned to the basal levels following chronic homotypic stress. In contrast, oxytocin mRNA expression was significantly increased following chronic homotypic stress. The number of oxytocin-immunoreactive cells was increased following chronic homotypic stress at the magnocellular part of the PVN. Icv injection of oxytocin reduced CRF mRNA expression induced by acute stress and chronic heterotypic stress. It is suggested that the adaptation mechanism to chronic stress may involve the upregulation of oxytocin expression in the hypothalamus, which in turn attenuates CRF expression.

Central oxytocin is involved in restoring impaired gastric motility following chronic repeated stress in mice.

Accumulation of continuous life stress (chronic stress) often causes gastric symptoms. The development of gastric symptoms may depend on how humans adapt to the stressful events in their daily lives. Although acute stress delays gastric emptying and alters upper gastrointestinal motility in rodents, the effects of chronic stress on gastric motility and its adaptation mechanism remains unclear. Central oxytocin has been shown to have antistress effects. We studied whether central oxytocin is involved in mediating the adaptation mechanism following chronic repeated stress. Mice were loaded with acute and chronic stress (repeated stress for five consecutive days), and solid gastric emptying and postprandial gastric motility were compared between acute and chronic repeated stress. Expression of oxytocin and CRF mRNA in the hypothalamus was studied following acute and chronic repeated stress. Delayed gastric emptying during acute stress (43.1 +/- 7.8%; n = 6, P < 0.05) was completely restored to normal levels (72.1 +/- 2.4%; n = 6) following chronic repeated stress. Impaired gastric motility induced by acute stress was also restored following chronic repeated stress. Intracerebroventricular injection of oxytocin (0.1 and 0.5 microg) restored the impaired gastric emptying and motility induced by acute stress. The restored gastric emptying and motility following chronic repeated stress were antagonized by intracerebroventricular injection of oxytocin antagonists. Oxytocin mRNA expression in the supraoptic nucleus (SON) and paraventricular nucleus (PVN) of the hypothalamus was significantly increased following chronic repeated stress. In contrast, increased CRF mRNA expression in the SON and PVN in response to acute stress was significantly reduced following chronic repeated stress. Our study suggests the novel finding that the upregulation of central oxytocin expression is involved in mediating the adaptation mechanism following chronic repeated stress in mice.

Electro-Acupuncture Attenuates Chronic Stress Responses via Up-Regulated Central NPY and GABA A Receptors in Rats.

Stress can increase the release of corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) in the hypothalamus, resulting in attenuation of gastric motor functions. In contrast, central neuropeptide Y (NPY) can reduce the biological actions of CRF, and in turn weaken stress responses. Although electroacupuncture (EA) at stomach 36 (ST-36) has been shown to have anti-stress effects, its mechanism has not yet been investigated. The effect of EA at ST-36 on the hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis and gastrointestinal motility in chronic complicated stress (CCS) conditions have not been studied and the inhibitory mechanism of NPY on CRF through the gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) A receptor need to be further investigated. A CCS rat model was set up, EA at ST-36 was applied to the bilateral hind limbs every day prior to the stress loading. Further, a GABA A receptor antagonist was intracerebroventricularly (ICV) injected daily. Central CRF and NPY expression levels were studied, serum corticosterone and NPY concentrations were analyzed, and gastric motor functions were assessed. CCS rats showed significantly elevated CRF expression and corticosterone levels, which resulted in inhibited gastric motor functions. EA at ST-36 significantly increased central NPY mRNA expression and reduced central CRF mRNA expression as well as the plasma corticosterone level, helping to restore gastric motor function. However, ICV administration of the GABA A receptor antagonist significantly abolished these effects. EA at ST-36 upregulates the hypothalamic NPY system. NPY may, through the GABA A receptor, significantly antagonize the overexpressed central CRF and attenuate the HPA axis activities in CCS conditions, exerting influences and helping to restore gastric motor function.