Effect of a five-week high-fat diet on serum-lipid composition and LPL mRNA expression in rat skeletal muscles

Our purpose was to investigate the effect of a 5-week high-fat diet on the body weight, blood components [triglycerides (TGs), free fatty acids (FFAs), and glucose], and lipoprotein lipase (LPL) mRNA expression in the skeletal muscles of rats. Body weight increased overtime in experimental and control groups without significant differences. In terms of the blood components, the density of TG was significantly lower in the high-fat diet group compared to the control, whereas FFA and glucose levels were similar in the two groups. Although the levels of glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate dehydrogenase(GAPDH) mRNA expression were similar between the groups, LPL mRNA expression was significantly higher in the high-fat diet group than that in the control group. The results of this study suggest that a high-fat diet enhances LPL mRNA expression, as well as possibly increases fat metabolism. For a better understanding of the relationship between diet patterns and fat metabolism, further analysis of genes related to the fat metabolism is warranted.