Growth hormone reverses dyslipidemia in adult offspring after maternal undernutrition

The abnormal intrauterine milieu of fetal growth retardation could lead to dyslipidemia in adulthood. Studies have shown that growth hormone (GH) therapy in small for gestational age (SGA) children would be beneficial for metabolic parameters. Here we investigated whether GH treatment introduced at adolescent period in SGA could reverse dyslipidemia during later life. SGA rat model was established by using semi-starvation treatment during the whole pregnancy. SGA or appropriate for gestational age (AGA) offspring were assigned to receive GH or normal saline (NS). Once-daily subcutaneous injections of GH were administered between 21–35 days of age. In adulthood, as compared to AGA, SGA showed: (1) decreased body weight and length; (2) increased serum triglycerides; (3) down-regulated hepatic AMPK-α1 but up-regulated SREBP-1c and ACC-1; (4) a significant reduction in histone H3 acetylation at the promoter of AMPK-α1. Exogenous GH administration led to a restoration of body weight and length and normalized serum triglycerides by reversing expression of AMPK-α1 and its targeted genes SREBP-1c and ACC-1, through increasing H3 acetylation at the promoter of AMPK-α1 in SGA in adult period. These results demonstrated positive effects on lipid metabolism by a short treatment course of GH in SGA adult period.