Objectives: The aim of this study was to evaluate if de novo hepatic lipid synthesis contributes to fatty acid overload in the liver of cats with feline hepatic lipidosis (FHL).
Methods: Lipogenic gene expression of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-alpha (PPAR-α), peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-gamma (PPAR-γ), fatty acid synthase (FASN) and sterol regulatory element-binding factor (SREBF1) were evaluated using quantitative RT-PCR in liver tissue of six cats with FHL and compared with the liver tissue of eight healthy cats.
Results: In liver tissue, PPAR-α, PPAR-γ and FASN mRNA expression levels were not significantly different (P >0.12, P >0.89 and P >0.5, respectively) in the FHL group compared with the control group. SREBF1 gene expression was downregulated around 10-fold in the FHL group vs the control group (P = 0.039).
Conclusions and relevance: The downregulation of SREBF1 in the liver tissue of cats with FHL does not support the hypothesis that de novo lipogenesis in the liver is an important pathway of fatty acid accumulation in FHL.
Keywords: Feline hepatic lipidosis; SREBP-1c; de novo lipogenesis; qRT-PCR.