Changes in hepatic glucose and lipid metabolism‐related parameters in domestic pigeon (Columba livia) during incubation and chick rearing

Abstract

This study aimed to evaluate the hepatic glucose and lipid metabolism-related parameters of adult male and female White King pigeons (Columba livia) during incubation and chick rearing. At day 4 (I4), 10 (I10) and 17 (I17) of incubation and day 1 (R1), 7 (R7), 15 (R15) and 25 (R25) of chick rearing, livers were sampled from six pigeons for each sex. Glycogen and fat contents, activities of glycolytic enzymes (hexokinase, HK; 6-phosphofructokinase, 6-PFK), and genes expressions of key enzymes involved in glycolysis (pyruvate kinase, PK; glucokinase, GK), gluconeogenesis (phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase cytosolic, PCK1; fructose-1,6-bisphosphatase, FBP1; glucose-6-phosphatase, G6Pase), fatty acid synthesis (fatty acid synthase, FAS; acetyl-CoA carboxylase, ACC) and fatty acid β-oxidation (carnitine palmitoyltransferase 1, CPT1; acyl-CoA 1, ACO) were measured. In male and female pigeon livers, glycogen content and HK activity dramatically increased after I17 and after R1, respectively; expressions of FBP1 and G6Pase genes were maximized at R15; activity of 6-PFK and expressions of PK and CPT1 genes were highest at R7; fat content and expressions of FAS and ACC genes steeply increased from I10 to R1. In females, hepatic expressions of GK and PCK1 genes were greatest at R7 and I17, respectively; however, in males, both of them were maximized at R15. Hepatic expression of ACO gene was significantly enhanced at R1 compared to I17 and R7 in males, whereas it was notably up-regulated at I17 and R7 in females. Furthermore, expressions of PCK1, GK, FAS and ACC genes were in significant relation to fat content in the livers of female pigeons, while fat content in male pigeons was highly correlated with expression of PCK1, ACC, CPT1 and ACO genes. In conclusion, regulations of glucose and lipid metabolic processes were enhanced in parent pigeon livers from terminal phases of incubation to mid phase of chick rearing with sexual effects.

A novel berberine‐metformin hybrid compound exerts therapeutic effects on obese type 2 diabetic rats

“…AMPK α and its downstream metabolic enzyme ACC have been identified as potential targets for the treatment of metabolic disorder, due to their inhibitory effects on glucose and lipid metabolism . Activation of AMPK/ACC pathway can enhance glucose uptake and glycolysis, while inhibit lipogenesis and cholesterol biosynthesis in the liver . Besides, G6Pase , FBPase and PEPCK genes are responsible for gluconeogenesis.…”

“…50 Activation of AMPK/ACC pathway can enhance glucose uptake and glycolysis, while inhibit lipogenesis and cholesterol biosynthesis in the liver. [51][52][53] Besides, G6Pase, FBPase and PEPCK genes are responsible for gluconeogenesis. It has been well established that the downregulation of G6Pase, FBPase and PEPCK genes can significantly inhibit gluconeogenesis, and subsequent reduce blood glucose levels.…”

Effects of incubation and chick rearing on intestinal morphology, digestive enzyme activities, and mRNA expression of nutrient transporter genes in the pigeon (Columba livia) under artificial farming conditions

“…Our results showed that pancreatic amylase activity gradually decreased from I4 to R1 but then recovered to the beginning level in the late chick-rearing period. Pigeon serum glucose concentration was stable from egg incubation to chick rearing ( Xie et al., 2018 ), but hepatic glycogen content was reported to decrease significantly during the incubation period and then recovered when feeding nestlings ( Wan et al., 2018 ). In addition, our present study indicated that the activities of maltase and sucrose in mucosa also maintained a relatively lower level from I17 to R1.…”

“…However, few studies have focused on the organ and metabolic changes in breeding birds, except during the migration and molting processes ( Christians and Williams, 1999 , Landys-Ciannelli et al., 2003 , Vézina and Williams, 2003 ). In our previous study, the body and organs of parental pigeons, shown to be a nutrient reserve, fluctuated in weight during incubation and chick-rearing period, and serum biochemical profiles and enzyme expression in the liver of breeding pigeons also changed significantly ( Wan et al., 2018 ; Xie et al., 2018 ). Dietary intake of parent pigeons was found to increase significantly when feeding squabs ( Xie et al., 2016 ); therefore, will the pigeon intestine vary in its morphology or digestive and absorption function, similar to mammals, for dealing with these changes?…”

Anti‑fibrosis activity of combination therapy with epigallocatechin gallate, taurine and genistein by regulating glycolysis, gluconeogenesis, and ribosomal and lysosomal signaling pathways in HSC‑T6 cells

“…Glycolysis and gluconeogenesis serve important roles in supplying ATP for hypoxic metabolism, cellular proliferation and apoptosis ( 41 ). Several enzymes and proteins, including hexokinase-2, aldolase A and glucose-6-phosphate isomerase, associated with glycolysis and gluconeogenesis may be potential molecular targets in pancreatic, breast and gastrointestinal tumors ( 42 , 43 ). The ribosome signaling pathway has been implicated in a wide variety of biological functions, including cell cycle progression, apoptosis and DNA damage responses ( 44 – 47 ).…”