The effects of high‐fat diet feeding over generations on body fat accumulation associated with lipoprotein lipase and leptin in rat adipose tissues

The effects of high‐fat diet feeding over generations on body fat accumulation were studied in rats. Male and female Sprague‐Dawley rats fed a high‐fat (HF) diet or a low‐fat (LF) diet were mated in the same diet group at age 13 weeks, and the male pups (1st generation) obtained were used in this experiment. The 1st generation rats were nurtured by their own mothers (Experiment 1) or F344 foster mother rats (chow‐fed) during pregnancy (Experiment 3) and the suckling period (Experiments 2 and 3). After weaning, rats with HF and LF dietary histories were fed a purified diet for 12–17 weeks. Body weights and abdominal adipose tissue weights were greater in rats with HF dietary histories than in those with LF dietary histories, even controlling for environmental backgrounds related to the mother rats during pregnancy and suckling periods. The levels of lipoprotein lipase and leptin mRNA in the perirenal adipose tissue were higher in rats with HF dietary histories. These results suggest that the effects on body fat accumulation of HF diet feeding over generations are not only associated with environmental factors but also with genetic factors. The obesogenous effects of HF diet feeding over generations may be associated with lipoprotein lipase and leptin gene expression on rat adipose tissues.