High-Fat, High-Sugar Diet Disrupts the Preovulatory Hormone Surge and Induces Cystic Ovaries in Cycling Female Rats

Abstract

Diet-induced obesity has been associated with various metabolic and reproductive disorders, including polycystic ovary syndrome. However, the mechanisms by which obesity influences the reproductive system are still not fully known. Studies have suggested that impairments in hormone signaling are associated with the development of symptoms such as acyclicity and ovarian cysts. However, these studies have often failed to address how these hormonal changes arise and how they might contribute to the progression of reproductive diseases. In the present study, we used a high-fat, high-sugar (HFHS) diet to induce obesity in a female rodent model to determine the changes in critical reproductive hormones that might contribute to the development of irregular estrous cycling and reproductive cycle termination. The HFHS animals exhibited impaired estradiol, progesterone (P4), and luteinizing hormone (LH) surges before ovulation. The HFHS diet also resulted in altered basal levels of testosterone (T) and LH. Furthermore, alterations in the basal P4/T ratio correlated strongly with ovarian cyst formation in HFHS rats. Thus, this model provides a method to assess the underlying etiology of obesity-related reproductive dysfunction and to examine an acyclic reproductive phenotype as it develops.

Animal Models for Human Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS) Focused on the Use of Indirect Hormonal Perturbations: A Review of the Literature

“…On the basis of the relationship between endocrinal alteration and metabolic controls, animal PCOS models using diet are consistent with obese models. A long-term (14 weeks) high-fat and high-sugar diet (HDHS; high fat chow with 60% of the calories derived from fat and 32% sucrose solution as daily water) significantly elevated the serum testosterone and insulin levels in rats [73]. In addition, irregular estrous cycle, increased fat mass, and cystic ovaries were observed.…”

Effects of treadmill exercise on PI3K/AKT/GSK-3β pathway and tau protein in high-fat diet-fed rats

“…Obesity, which is defined as a state of having excessive fat tissue that is caused by overnutrition, a sedentary lifestyle, and other environmental factors, is an important risk factor for various metabolic diseases 1 , 2 . Several studies have shown that obesity is closely related to metabolic diseases such as type 2 diabetes, hypertension, and cardiac disease.…”

Histological classification of canine ovarian cyst types with reference to medical history

“…Since life expectancy of different dog breeds varies, there is a tendency of increasing OC prevalence in dogs over the age of six. A relationship between obesity and OC incidence has been reported in human [ 21 ], mouse [ 27 ], and rat [ 36 ], but investigations into that association in dogs are lacking. Our study population included 38.9% (n = 7/18) overweight bitches, whereas 61.1% (n = 11/18) were normal weighted.…”