Remodeling of Hepatocyte Mitochondrial Metabolism and De Novo Lipogenesis During the Embryonic-to-Neonatal Transition in Chickens

Abstract

Embryonic-to-neonatal development in chicken is characterized by high rates of lipid oxidation in the late-term embryonic liver and high rates of de novo lipogenesis in the neonatal liver. This rapid remodeling of hepatic mitochondrial and cytoplasmic networks occurs without symptoms of hepatocellular stress. Our objective was to characterize the metabolic phenotype of the embryonic and neonatal liver and explore whether these metabolic signatures are preserved in primary cultured hepatocytes. Plasma and liver metabolites were profiled using mass spectrometry based metabolomics on embryonic day 18 (ed18) and neonatal day 3 (nd3). Hepatocytes from ed18 and nd3 were isolated and cultured, and treated with insulin, glucagon, growth hormone and corticosterone to define hormonal responsiveness and determine their impacts on mitochondrial metabolism and lipogenesis. Metabolic profiling illustrated the clear transition from the embryonic liver relying on lipid oxidation to the neonatal liver upregulating de novo lipogenesis. This metabolic phenotype was conserved in the isolated hepatocytes from the embryos and the neonates. Cultured hepatocytes from the neonatal liver also maintained a robust response to insulin and glucagon, as evidenced by their contradictory effects on lipid oxidation and lipogenesis. In summary, primary hepatocytes from the embryonic and neonatal chicken could be a valuable tool to investigate mechanisms regulating hepatic mitochondrial metabolism and de novo lipogenesis.

Folate inhibits lipid deposition via the autophagy pathway in chicken hepatocytes

“…Folic acid increased the expression of LPL and IGF2 genes and decreased the methylation level of IGF2 gene in liver of broilers ( Liu et al, 2018 ). A previous transcriptome sequencing study found that folate treatment reduced not only PPARγ and FAS expression levels, and lipid droplets in abdominal fat, but also LPL, PPARγ, and FAS protein levels in livers ( Zhang et al, 2021 ; Surugihalli et al, 2022 ). In addition, signaling pathways associated with folate biosynthesis, PPAR signaling pathway, TGF-beta were also enriched ( Zhang et al, 2021 ).…”

“…In chickens, liver is the major site of lipid synthesis ( Noble and Cocchi, 1990 ) and previous work on hepatic lipid deposition at the embryo stage has been reported ( Na et al, 2018 ). There are numerous other studies designed to reveal the molecular changes during hepatic de novo lipogenesis ( Cogburn et al, 2018 ; Liu et al, 2020 ; Surugihalli et al, 2022 ).…”

Dietary restriction promote sperm remodeling in aged roosters based on transcriptome analysis

“…With the development of sequencing technology, transcriptomes have been shown to have high accuracy in detecting differentially expressed genes (DEGs) related to important economic traits in chickens [ 21 ], They have been widely applied in the study of chicken growth and development [ 26 , 27 ], reproductive traits [ 27 , 28 ], and disease resistance [ 29 ]. Numerous studies have reported that light fasting or intermittent fasting was beneficial to the health of humans and animals, enhancing systemic immune function and slowing down aging [ 30 , 31 ].…”