Excessive BCAA regulates fat metabolism partially through the modification of m6A RNA methylation in weanling piglets

Jinghui Heng; Zhihui Wu; Min Tian; Jiaming Chen; Hanqing Song; Fang Chen; Wutai Guan; Shihai Zhang

doi:10.1186/s12986-019-0424-x

Excessive BCAA regulates fat metabolism partially through the modification of m⁶A RNA methylation in weanling piglets

Nutr Metab (Lond). 2020 Jan 23:17:10. doi: 10.1186/s12986-019-0424-x. eCollection 2020.

Authors

Jinghui Heng¹, Zhihui Wu¹, Min Tian¹, Jiaming Chen¹, Hanqing Song¹, Fang Chen¹, Wutai Guan^{1

2}, Shihai Zhang^{1

2}

Affiliations

¹ 1Guangdong Province Key Laboratory of Animal Nutrition Control, College of Animal Science, South China Agricultural University, Wushan Avenue, Tianhe District, Guangzhou, 510642 China.
² 2College of Animal Science and National Engineering Research Center for Breeding Swine Industry, South China Agricultural University, Wushan Avenue, Tianhe District, Guangzhou, 510642 China.

Abstract

Background: Fat percentage and distribution in pigs are associated with their productive efficiency and meat quality. Dietary branched-chain amino acids (BCAA) regulate fat metabolism in weanling piglets with unknown mechanism. It is reported that N6-methyl-adenosine (m⁶A) is involved in fat metabolism in mice. The current study was designed to investigate the relationship between dietary branched-chain amino acids and fat metabolism through N6-methyl-adenosine (m⁶A) in weanling piglets.

Methods: A total of 18 healthy crossbred weaned piglets (Duroc × Landrace × Large White, 10.45 ± 0.41 kg) were divided into 3 treatments and were fed the low BCAA dose diet (L-BCAA), the normal dose BCAA diet (N-BCAA), or the high dose BCAA (H-BCAA) diet for 3 weeks.

Results: Our results show that compared with the N-BCAA group, the L-BCAA group had higher concentration of serum leptin (P < 0.05), while the H-BCAA group had lower concentration of serum adiponectin (P < 0.05). Fatty acid synthesis in pigs from the H-BCAA group was lower than those from the N-BCAA group with the down-regulation of lipogenic genes (ACACA, FASN, PPAR-r, SREBP-1c in ventral and dorsal fat, SREBP-1c in liver) and up-regulation of lipolysis genes (HSL, ATGL, CPT-1A, FABP4 in ventral fat, HSL in liver) (P < 0.05). Similarly, fatty acid synthesis in pigs from the L-BCAA group was also lower than those from the N-BCAA group with the decrease of lipogenic genes (ACACA in ventral, ACACA and FASN in dorsal fat, ACACA, FASN, SREBP-1c in liver) and the increase of lipolysis genes (ATGL, CPT-1A CD36, FABP4 in ventral fat and HSL, ATGL, CPT-1A in dorsal fat, CPT-1A) (P < 0.05). Feeding H-BCAA diet significantly reduced total m⁶A levels in ventral and dorsal fat and liver tissues (P < 0.05). The decrease of total m⁶A is associated with down-regulation of METTL3, METTL14 and FTO in dorsal fat and METTL3 and FTO in liver (P < 0.05). Decreased m⁶A modification of ACACA and FASN in ventral and dorsal adipose tissues was observed in pig fed with excessive BCAA.

Conclusion: These results suggest that insufficient or excessive BCAA decreased the fat deposition by increasing lipolysis and deceasing lipogenesis in adipose and liver tissues. Dietary excessive BCAA might regulate the process of lipid metabolism partly through the m⁶A RNA methylation.

Keywords: Branched-chain amino acids; Lipid metabolism; Low-protein diet; Weanling piglets; m6A RNA methylation.