The Effect of Endurance Exercise and Adenosine Consumption on UCP-1 Gene Expression in the Visceral Adipose Tissue of Obese Male Rats

Objective: Reducing white adipose tissue is an important strategy for treatment of obesity and its related metabolic disorders. The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of endurance exercise and adenosine consumption on the expression of selected genes of thermogenic pathway in the visceral adipose tissue of obese male rats. Materials and Methods: Twenty male wistar rats were fed on a high-fat diet (40 % fat) 12 weeks to get mean weight 319±30 gr. The rats were selected randomly in four groups; control-saline, control-adenosine, exercise-adenosine and exercise-saline. The adenosine groups received 0.2mgr/kg adenosine 12 weeks (seven days a week), 3 hours before exercise. The exercise schedule included running on the turning wheel without slope, performed 12 weeks, five sessions a week, with the speed of 20-25 meters per minute for 15-31 minutes. About 48 hours after the last exercise session, the rat’s kidneys were removed and frozen immediately. In order to measure the relative expression of UCP-1 gene, the method of Real Time (RT) - PCR based on SYBR-Green dye was used. The gathered data was studied using the statistical method of two-way analysis of variance. Results: Twelve weeks of endurance exercise with medium intensity and adenosine consumption resulted a significant increase of UCP-1 gene expression (P-value: 0.001 and P-value: 0.005 accordingly). Nevertheless, the collective effect of exercise and adenosine is indicative of insignificant difference in changes of the relative expression of UCP-1 gene in visceral adipose tissue. Conclusion: Endurance exercise and adenosine consumption independently led to an increase in UCP-1 gene expression in the visceral adipose tissue of obese male rats Nevertheless, the collective effect of exercise and adenosine is indicative of insignificant difference in changes of the relative expression of UCP-1 gene in visceral adipose tissue. It is probable that some mechanisms be activated through the collective effect of exercise and adenosine that reduce the synergic effect of exercise and adenosine.