Oral Presentation The Annual Scientific Meeting of the Endocrine Society of Australia and the Society for Reproductive Biology 2013

Maternal low GI diets improves glucose tolerance and reduces visceral fat mass in female offspring (#84)

Mohammed Alnussairawi 1 , Amanda Kheng 1 , Jennie Brand-Miller 2 , Sheridan Gentili 3 , Beverly Muhlhausler 1
  1. FOODplus Research Centre, School of Agriculture Food and Wine, The University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA, Australia
  2. Boden Institute of Obesity, Nutrition, Exercise & Eating Disorders, University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia
  3. Sansom Institute for Health Research, University of South Australia, Adelaide, SA, Australia

Background: Low glycaemic index (GI) diets have been associated with improved insulin sensitivity and lower weight gain in adults, however the effect of maternal low GI diets on the metabolic heath of the offspring is unknown. This study aimed to test the hypothesis that consuming a low GI diet during pregnancy and lactation would improve metabolic health of the offspring at weaning.

Methods: Albino Wistar rats were fed either a low GI (n=13) or high GI (n=12) diet from 4 weeks before mating until the end of lactation. Glucose tolerance was assessed in the dam during lactation and in one male and one female pup from each litter before weaning. Tissues were collected from offspring at weaning (3 weeks of age) fordetermination of fat mass. Hepatic expression of lipogenic genes (G3PDH, ACCβ, SREBP-1α, PPARα) was determined by qRT-PCR. Results were compared using 2-way ANOVA and repeated measures ANOVA as appropriate.

Results: Glucose tolerance was greater in low GI dams compared to high GI dams (AUC: 1322 ± 55 vs 1522 ± 39 mmol/L/min, P<0.04). At 3 weeks of age, female offspring of low GI dams had improved glucose tolerance (AUC: 1242 ± 28 vs 1350 ± 39 mmol/L/min, P<0.02) and lower visceral fat mass relative to body weight (0.45  ± 0.003 g/g vs 0.53  ± 0.003g/g, P<0.05) compared with offspring of high GI dams. There were no differences in  liver weight or hepatic lipid content between the low and high GI groups. In males, G3PDH expression was lower in low GI compared to high GI offspring (0.28 ± 0.026 vs 0.68 ± 0.15, P<0.03) There were no differences between the low GI and high GI groups in hepatic expression of other key lipogenic genes at 3 weeks of age, ACCβ, SREBP-1α or PPARα in either male or female offspring.

Conclusion: We have shown that consuming a low GI diet during pregnancy and lactation improves maternal glucose tolerance and is associated with an improved metabolic profile in female offspring at weaning. This study highlights the potential for low GI diets in pregnancy to improve the metabolic health of future generations.