The Interplay of Lifestyle and Adipokines in the Non-Obese Stroke-Prone Spontaneously Hypertensive Rats

Although the morphological features and functions of adipose tissue are well-described in obesity-prone animal models, less information is available on animals such as the stroke-prone spontaneously hypertensive (SHRSP) strain with cardiovascular abnormalities, which is not characterized by excessive adiposity. Our aim was to focus on lifestyle-induced (type of diet and physical exercise) effects on adipokine profile and lipid peroxidation in SHRSP rats. In our study, male Wistar-kyoto (control) and SHRSP rats were used. SHRSP rats were fed either standard chow or a high-fat diet with 40% fat content (HFD). One group of the animals was placed into cages fitted with a running-wheel; thus, the dietary and training period started at the same time and lasted for 12 weeks. At the end of the experimental period, adiponectin, leptin, omentin, and chemerin concentrations were determined from adipose tissue and serum. Besides adipokines, malondialdehyde (MDA) levels were also measured. Twelve weeks of HFD significantly decreased adiponectin and omentin concentrations of both adipose tissue and serum, which were ameliorated by physical exercise. Serum leptin, chemerin, and MDA values were elevated in HFD groups; however, physical exercise was able to mitigate these adverse changes. Our results underpin the crosstalk between lifestyle changes and dysfunctional adipose tissue in SHRSP rats.