Maternal high-fat diet alters methylation and gene expression of dopamine and opioid-related genes.

ABSTRACT: Maternal obesity during pregnancy increases the risk of obesity in the offspring. Obesity, arising from an imbalance of energy intake and expenditure, can be driven by the ingestion of palatable [high fat (HF), high sugar], energy-dense foods. Dopamine and opioid circuitry are neural substrates associated with reward that can affect animals' preference for palatable foods. Using a mouse model, the long-term effect of maternal consumption of a HF diet on dopamine and opioid gene expression within the mesocorticolimbic reward circuitry and hypothalamus of the offspring was investigated. Mice from dams fed a HF diet during pregnancy and lactation showed an increased preference for sucrose and fat. Gene expression, measured using quantitative real-time PCR, revealed a significant approximately

SUBMITTER: Vucetic Z 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2946145 | biostudies-literature | 2010 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature