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Water deprivation induces appetite and alters metabolic strategy in Notomys alexis : unique mechanisms for water production in the desert

Takei, Yoshio, Bartolo, Ray C., Fujihara, Hiroaki, Ueta, Yoichi and Donald, John A. 2012, Water deprivation induces appetite and alters metabolic strategy in Notomys alexis : unique mechanisms for water production in the desert, Royal society of London. Proceedings B. Biological sciences, vol. 279, no. 1738, pp. 2599-2608.

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Title Water deprivation induces appetite and alters metabolic strategy in Notomys alexis : unique mechanisms for water production in the desert
Author(s) Takei, Yoshio
Bartolo, Ray C.
Fujihara, Hiroaki
Ueta, Yoichi
Donald, John A.
Journal name Royal society of London. Proceedings B. Biological sciences
Volume number 279
Issue number 1738
Start page 2599
End page 2608
Total pages 10
Publisher Royal Society Publishing
Place of publication London, England
Publication date 2012-07-07
ISSN 0962-8452
1471-2954
Keyword(s) xeric adaptation
appetite regulation
brain-gut axis
energy metabolism
oxidation water
Summary Like many desert animals, the spinifex hopping mouse, Notomys alexis, can maintain water balance without drinking water. The role of the kidney in producing a small volume of highly concentrated urine has been well-documented, but little is known about the physiological mechanisms underpinning the metabolic production of water to offset obligatory water loss. In Notomys, we found that water deprivation (WD) induced a sustained high food intake that exceeded the pre-deprivation level, which was driven by parallel changes in plasma leptin and ghrelin and the expression of orexigenic and anorectic neuropeptide genes in the hypothalamus; these changed in a direction that would stimulate appetite. As the period of WD was prolonged, body fat disappeared but body mass increased gradually, which was attributed to hepatic glycogen storage. Switching metabolic strategy from lipids to carbohydrates would enhance metabolic water production per oxygen molecule, thus providing a mechanism to minimize respiratory water loss. The changes observed in appetite control and metabolic strategy in Notomys were absent or less prominent in laboratory mice. This study reveals novel mechanisms for appetite regulation and energy metabolism that could be essential for desert rodents to survive in xeric environments.
Language eng
Field of Research 069999 Biological Sciences not elsewhere classified
Socio Economic Objective 970106 Expanding Knowledge in the Biological Sciences
HERDC Research category C1 Refereed article in a scholarly journal
Copyright notice ©2012, The Royal Society
Persistent URL http://hdl.handle.net/10536/DRO/DU:30046953

Document type: Journal Article
Collection: School of Life and Environmental Sciences
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