Metabolic profile and spontaneous physical activity modulation under short-term food restriction in young rats

Abstract

The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of short-term food restriction (6-weeks) on metabolic profile and spontaneous physical activity (SPA) of young male Wistar rats. Thirty rats had their baseline SPA measured at 21 days-old and were separated into two groups at 28 days-old: Control (CG) and 50% of food restriction (FR). The food restriction protocol lasted six weeks, being the SPA measured weekly by a gravimetric apparatus. At the end of the experiment, biochemical analyses were performed in serum and tissue samples with statistical significance set at 5%. FR showed less SPA than CG, as occurred for body mass, water intake, adipose tissue and liver, heart and soleus glycogen, serum glucose, total protein, triglycerides and total cholesterol (P<0.05). Data set demonstrates that low substrate stores signaled to decrease spontaneous physical activity to save energy.