Date on Senior Honors Thesis
5-2016
Document Type
Senior Honors Thesis
Department
Biology
Degree Program
College of Arts and Sciences
Author's Keywords
Adiponectin Receptors; cardiac muscle; liver; skeletal muscle; rat
Abstract
Both obesity and diabetes are domestic and international health problems. Adiponectin is a protein secreted from adipocytes and other tissues such as muscle which influences carbohydrate and lipid metabolism. For this reason, Adiponectin is a primary target for therapeutic treatment of metabolic diseases. Adiponectin interacts with receptors termed AdipoR1 and AdipoR2, which are structurally similar to G protein-coupled receptors except with a reverse membrane topology. The aim of this study is to determine the levels of AdipoR1 and AdipoR2 within cardiac, skeletal, and liver tissue samples of mature non-obese rats. The objective of determining potential differences in the tissue levels of these receptors and determining any gender differences will be used to establish whether or not the rat could make a viable model for further study in adiponectin related research. Samples of tissue were homogenized, the lysate centrifuged to produce a fluid supernatant, and the supernatants’ protein content analyzed. AdipoR1 and AdipoR2 levels were determined by ELISA (NeoBiolab, Boston, MA). The data supports a difference (p≤ 0.02) in AdipoR1 levels between the liver and muscle tissues (gastrocnemius, soleus, and heart), as well as between the genders for the gastrocnemius and liver. The levels of AdipoR2 in the liver were also significantly lower than in muscles (heart and gastrocnemius), with significant differences (p≤ 0.01) between the genders for liver. The data from the current study supports previous work on the relative levels of AdipoR1 in muscle and liver, but does not identify any difference between muscle types. In addition, gender differences in the levels of AdipoR1 in gastrocnemius and liver are novel observations. However, the data from the current study contradicts that of previous reports, which had suggested that liver had a higher level of AdipoR2 than muscle tissue, indicating that further investigation and confirmation is necessary.
Recommended Citation
Sippel, Jacqueline, "An investigation into the adiponectin receptor levels in cardiac, liver and skeletal muscle of mature rats." (2016). College of Arts & Sciences Senior Honors Theses. Paper 125.
http://doi.org/10.18297/honors/125
Lay Summary
Both obesity and diabetes are domestic and international health problems. Adiponectin is a protein secreted from fat cells and muscle tissue, which influences the metabolism of sugars and fats. For this reason, Adiponectin is a primary target for therapeutic treatment of these metabolic diseases. The aim of this study is to determine the levels of AdipoR1 and AdipoR2 (the receptors for adiponectin) within cardiac, skeletal muscle, and liver tissue samples of mature non-obese rats in order to determine if the rat can be used as a model for studies of adiponectin. The data from the current study support previous work on the relative levels of AdipoR1 in muscle and liver tissues; however, the data from the current study contradict that of previous reports, which had suggested that liver had a higher level of AdipoR2 than muscle tissue, indicating that further investigation and confirmation is necessary to determine if the rat is a robust model for studies of adiponectin receptors.
