The effects of glucocorticoids on energy metabolism and food intake
in humans.
Tataranni, Pietro A., D. Enette Larson, Soren Snitker, James B. Young,
J. P. Flatt, Eric Ravussin.
NIH-CDNS-NIDDK, 4212 N.16th Street, Phoenix, AZ, 85016,
Northwestern Medical School, Chicago, IL, 60611, Dept of Biochemistry
and Molecular Biology, University of Massachusetts School of
Medicine, Worcester, MA, 01655
APStracts 3:0078E, 1996.
The effect of glucocorticoid administration on energy metabolism and
food intake was studied in 20 healthy non-diabetic Caucasian male
volunteers (27+/-5y, 72.1+/-9.4kg, 20+/-7% body fat; means+/-SD)
randomly and blindly assigned to glucocorticoid (methylprednisolone,
METH; n=10) or placebo (PLAC; n=10) treatment. Each subject was
studied twice: during a weight maintenance diet and during ad libitum
food intake. Energy metabolism was measured by indirect calorimetry
and food intake by an automated food-selection system. Twenty-four
-hour urinary norepinephrine excretion (24-h NE) was used as an
estimate of the sympathetic nervous system activity. During weight
maintenance: 1) METH IV infusion (125mg over 30 min) increased energy
expenditure when compared to PLAC; 2) after 4 days of oral therapy,
METH (40 mg/d) decreased 24-h NE and increased energy expenditure
when compared to PLAC. During ad libitum food intake, after 4 days of
METH (40mg/d)/PLAC oral therapy both groups increased their energy
intake over weight maintenance but the increase was significantly
larger in the METH group compared to the PLAC group (4554+/-1857 vs
2867+/-846 kcal/d; p=0.04). Our data suggest that therapeutic doses
of glucocorticoids induce obesity mostly by increasing energy intake,
an effect which may be related to the ability of glucocorticoids to
act directly or indirectly on the central regulation of appetite.
Received 26 Decmeber 1995; accepted in final form 29 March 1996.
APS Manuscript Number E594-5.
Article publication pending Am. J. Physiol. (Endocrinol. Metab.).
ISSN 1080-4757 Copyright 1996 The American Physiological Society.
Published in APStracts on 23 April 96