Efeitos do jejum intermitente associado ou não à administração de óleo de coco (Cocos nucifera L.) sobre o eixo entero-hepático de ratos induzidos à obesidade

Abstract

Obesity is a disease characterized by the excessive accumulation of body fat, which can also affect the hepatobiliary system and intestinal health. Nutritional strategies, such as calorie restriction, are essential in the treatment of obesity. However, other nutritional interventions are being studied due to the challenging long-term maintenance of calorie restriction. Among them, studies conducted independently on intermittent fasting or the administration of coconut oil in obesity have become popular due to their beneficial effects on weight loss and metabolic control. However, there is currently a gap in understanding the benefits of these combined interventions. Therefore, this study aimed to evaluate the effect of intermittent fasting (IF), with or without the consumption of coconut oil (CO), on the enterohepatic axis of obese Wistar rats. Fifty males rats, approximately 80 days old, were randomized into five groups: control (CG); obese (OG); and obese groups with intermittent fasting (OIF); with intermittent fasting and administration of coconut oil (OIFCO); and with calorie restriction (OCR). The OG, OIF, OIFCO, and OCR rats were induced to obesity through a high-sugar diet for 17 weeks, while the CG rats received commercial feed ad libitum. During the last four weeks, the OIF and OIFCO groups underwent a 15-hour fasting period, and the OCR group underwent a 30% restriction of habitual caloric intake. The CG and OG rats consumed the diet ad libitum. The OIFCO group received gavage with coconut oil (1000 mg/kg body weight), while all other groups (CG, OG, OIF, and OCR) received gavage with physiological saline (1 mL/day) also during the last four weeks of the experiment. Weight, consumption, and somatic parameters were evaluated before euthanasia. After euthanasia, triglycerides (TG), total cholesterol (TC) and fractions; fecal, intestinal, and liver organic acids and bile acids; histological analyses of the intestine and liver; and counting of fecal bacterial groups were analyzed. The IF protocols reduced serum concentrations of total cholesterol (on average 54.31%), LDL (on average 53.39%), and triglycerides (on average 23.94%) compared to OG, and the OIFCO group showed the highest HDL (on average 38.73%) compared to all groups. OIFCO presented a lower metabolic load (on average 28.58%) and OCR a lower metabolic load (on average 48.63%) compared to other groups. OIFCO had lower fecal excretion of organic acids, followed by the OIF group, compared to the others. The OIFCO group showed the highest fecal excretion of TG and TC, while the OCR group showed higher fecal excretion of total bile acids. Fecal excretion of TG and TC had a positive correlation with hepatic TG (r = 0.83) and hepatic TC (r = 0.79), respectively. OCR showed higher fecal excretion of propionic acid and lactic acid compared to OIFCO and OIF. The count of Lactobacillus was similar between groups; however, the count of Bifidobacterium was lower in the OCR group compared to OIF and OIFCO. The intestine and liver showed no histological changes in any group. Intermittent fasting protocols associated with coconut oil and calorie restriction demonstrated the best effects on parameters of the enterohepatic axis in obese rats.