Effects of Chronic Growth Hormone Treatment on Lipogenesis by Rat Adipose Tissue

Abstract

Treatment of hypophysectomized rats with ovine growth hormone (1 mg /rat/day for 4 days) results in a decrease in the ether-extractable material in both epididymal and omental adipose tissue. Concomitantly, the ability of adipose tissue obtained from these animals to synthesize lipid in vitro from uniformly labeled glucose or leucine-2-C₁₄ is reduced by a factor of at least 3. The oxidation of glucose to CO₂ is also reduced, but the formation of CO₂ from leucine is unaffected. It is suggested that inhibition of lipid synthesis may be causally related to many of the previously noted effects of growth hormone on lipid metabolism.