Characterization of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease in rats for low protein diet induced

Abstract

Model of study: 

Experimental study. Objectives:  this study had as objective evaluate and characterize a low protein diet as an experimental model for nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). Methods: male Wistar rats were divided in two groups with isocaloric diets: control (GC) in which the used diet followed praised for the AIN-93 and the low protein (GH), with reduced amount of protein of 20% for 10%. The diets and water had been offered ad libitum over four weeks. After this period the animals were sacrificed and analyzed: glycemia; urinary nitrogen; serum protein; liver total lipids; cholesterol; weight variation and food consumed.Results: the glycemia and the urinary nitrogen had not presented significant differences between GC and GH (p>0,05), The change of weight in the last day of the experiment was significant (p<0,02). The percentage of total liver lipids was higher in the GH, when compared with the GC (p<0,04). There was lower levels of cholesterol (p<0,01) and serum protein (0,005) in GH. The food consumed was not different between the groups.Conclusions: in this paper the low protein diet constitutes a model of NAFLD induction that can be characterized for serum protein and plasmatic cholesterol and increased fat in the liver, however not alterations in the glycemia suggest no changes in insulin sensitivity, thus constituting a defective model to study one of the main factors of risk for the establishment of the NAFLD, the resistance to insulin.