Abstract
INTRODUCTION:
Involvement of endogenous cannabinoids (eCBs) in obesity is well-characterized. However, information regarding eCB physiology in obesity associated with pregnancy is sparse.
METHODS:
From at least 9 months before conception, non-pregnant baboons (Papio spp.) were fed a diet of either 45% fat (HFD; n=11) or 12% fat or a control diet (CTR; n=11), and dietary intervention continued through pregnancy. Maternal and fetal venous plasma samples were evaluated using liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry to quantify anandamide (AEA) and 2-arachidonoyl glycerol (2-AG). Placental, maternal and fetal hepatic tissues were analyzed using RT-PCR, Western blot, and immunohistochemistry. mRNA and protein expression of endocannabinoid receptors (CB1R and CB2R), Fatty Acid Amide Hydrolase (FAAH), Diacylglycerol Lipase (DAGL), Monoacylglycerol Lipase (MAGL) and Cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) were determined. Statistical analyses were performed with the non-parametric Scheirer-Ray-Hare extension of the Kruskal-Wallis test to analyze the effects of diet (HFD vs. CTR), fetal sex (male vs. female), and the diet x sex interaction.
RESULTS:
Fetal weight was influenced by fetal sex but not by maternal diet. Maternal circulating 2-AG concentrations increased, and fetal circulating concentrations decreased in the HFD group, independent of fetal sex. CB1R receptor expression was detected in syncytiotrophoblasts (HFD) and the fetal endothelium (CTR and HFD). Placental CB2R protein expression was higher in males and lower in female fetuses in the HFD group. Fetal hepatic CB2R, Fatty Acid Amide Hydrolase (FAAH), Cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2), and DAGLα protein expression decreased in the HFD group compared to the CTR group.
Copyright © 2017, American Journal of Physiology-Endocrinology and Metabolism.
KEYWORDS:
Endogenous cannabinoids; High Fat Diet; liver; placenta; pregnancy
- PMID: 29138223
- DOI: 10.1152/ajpendo.00119.2017
