Effects of Light-at-Night on the Rat Liver – A Role for the Autonomic Nervous System

Frontiers in Neuroscience

Eric Fliers¹  Andries Kalsbeek¹  Paul Wackers²  Linda van Kerkhof²  Martijn van Faassen³  Michel van Weeghel⁵  Anne-Loes Opperhuizen⁶  Ewout Foppen⁶  Martijs Jonker⁷ 

[1] Amsterdam University Medical Center, Department of Endocrinology and Metabolism, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, Netherlands;Centre for Health Protection, National Institute for Public Health and the Environment, Bilthoven, Netherlands;Department of Laboratory Medicine, University Medical Centre Groningen, University of Groningen, Groningen, Netherlands;Hypothalamic Integration Mechanisms, Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience, Amsterdam, Netherlands;Laboratory Genetic Metabolic Diseases, Amsterdam University Medical Center, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, Netherlands;Laboratory of Endocrinology, Amsterdam University Medical Center, Department of Clinical Chemistry, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, Netherlands;MAD – Dutch Genomics Service and Support Provider, Swammerdam Institute for Life Sciences, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, Netherlands;

关键词: transcriptome;    metabolome;    biological clock;    neural pathway;    circadian;   

DOI  :  10.3389/fnins.2019.00647

来源: DOAJ

【 摘 要 】

Exposure to light at night (LAN) has been associated with serious pathologies, including obesity, diabetes and cancer. Recently we showed that 2 h of LAN impaired glucose tolerance in rats. Several studies have suggested that the autonomic nervous system (ANS) plays an important role in communicating these acute effects of LAN to the periphery. Here, we investigated the acute effects of LAN on the liver transcriptome of male Wistar rats. Expression levels of individual genes were not markedly affected by LAN, nevertheless pathway analysis revealed clustered changes in a number of endocrine pathways. Subsequently, we used selective hepatic denervations [sympathetic (Sx), parasympathetic (Px), total (Tx, i.e., Sx plus Px), sham] to investigate the involvement of the ANS in the effects observed. Surgical removal of the sympathetic or parasympathetic hepatic branches of the ANS resulted in many, but small changes in the liver transcriptome, including a pathway involved with circadian clock regulation, but it clearly separated the four denervation groups. On the other hand, analysis of the liver metabolome was not able to separate the denervation groups, and only 6 out of 78 metabolites were significantly up- or downregulated after denervations. Finally, removal of the sympathetic and parasympathetic hepatic nerves combined with LAN exposure clearly modulated the effects of LAN on the liver transcriptome, but left most endocrine pathways unaffected.Conclusion: One-hour light-at-night acutely affects the liver transcriptome. Part of this effect is mediated via the nervous innervation, as a hepatectomy modulated and reduced the effect of LAN on liver transcripts.

【 授权许可】

Unknown