Transcriptomics, metabolomics and histology indicate that high-carbohydrate diet negatively affects the liver health of blunt snout bream (Megalobrama amblycephala)

BMC Genomics

Research Article

Ivan Jakovlić¹  Wassana Prisingkorn²  Han Liu²  Panita Prathomya²  Wei-Min Wang²  Yu-Hua Zhao² 

[1] Bio-Transduction Lab, Wuhan Institute of Biotechnology, 430075, Wuhan, People’s Republic of China;College of Fisheries Huazhong Agricultural University, Key Lab of Freshwater Animal Breeding, Ministry of Agriculture, Key Lab of Agricultural Animal Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction of Ministry of Education, Freshwater Aquaculture Collaborative Innovation Center of Hubei Province, 430070, Wuhan, People’s Republic of China;

关键词: Fish;    Aquaculture;    Hepatosomatic index;    NAFLD;    Neurodegenerative diseases;   

DOI  :  10.1186/s12864-017-4246-9

 received in 2017-06-20, accepted in 2017-10-31,  发布年份 2017

来源: Springer

【 摘 要 】

BackgroundGlobal trend of the introduction of high levels of relatively cheap carbohydrates to reduce the amount of costly protein in the aquatic animal feed production has affected the aquaculture of an economically important cyprinid fish, blunt snout bream (Megalobrama amblycephala). This dietary shift has resulted in increased prevalence of metabolic disorders, often causing economic losses. High dietary intake of carbohydrates, associated with obesity, is one of the major causes of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) in humans.ResultsWe have conducted an eight-week feeding trial to better understand how a high-carbohydrate diet (HCBD) affects the liver health in this fish. Hepatosomatic index and lipid content were significantly (P < 0.05) higher in the HCBD group. Histology results also suggested pathological changes in the livers of HCBD group, with excessive lipid accumulation and indication of liver damage. Metabolomics and serum biochemistry analyses showed that a number of metabolites indicative of liver damage were increased in the HCBD group. This group also exhibited low levels of betaine, which is a metabolite crucial for maintaining the healthy liver functions. Transcriptomic and qPCR analyses indicated that HCBD had a strong impact on the expression of a large number of genes associated with the NAFLD and insulin signalling pathways, which may lead to the development of insulin resistance in hepatocytes, pathological liver changes, and eventually the NAFLD.ConclusionsTranscriptomics, metabolomics and histology results all indicate early symptoms of liver damage. However whether these would actually lead to the development of NAFLD after a longer period of time, remains inconclusive. Additionally, a very high number of upregulated genes in the HCBD group associated with several neurodegenerative diseases is a strong indication of neurodegenerative changes caused by the high-carbohydrate diet in blunt snout bream. This suggests that fish might present a good model to study neurodegenerative changes associated with high-carbohydrate diet in humans.

【 授权许可】

CC BY   
© The Author(s). 2017