Sex-dependent impact of Scp-2/Scp-x gene ablation on hepatic phytol metabolism. Academic Article uri icon

abstract

  • While prior studies focusing on male mice suggest a role for sterol carrier protein-2/sterol carrier protein-x (SCP-2/SCP-x; DKO) on hepatic phytol metabolism, its role in females is unresolved. This issue was addressed using female and male wild-type (WT) and DKO mice fed a phytoestrogen-free diet without or with 0.5% phytol. GC/MS showed that hepatic: i) phytol was absent and its branched-chain fatty acid (BCFA) metabolites were barely detectable in WT control-fed mice; ii) accumulation of phytol as well as its peroxisomal metabolite BCFAs (phytanic acidpristanic and 2,3-pristenic acids) was increased by dietary phytol in WT females, but only slightly in WT males; iii) accumulation of phytol and BCFA was further increased by DKO in phytol-fed females, but much more markedly in males. Livers of phytol-fed WT female mice as well as phytol-fed DKO female and male mice also accumulated increased proportion of saturated straight-chain fatty acids (LCFA) at the expense of unsaturated LCFA. Liver phytol accumulation was not due to increased SCP-2 binding/transport of phytol since SCP-2 bound phytanic acid, but not its precursor phytol. Thus, the loss of Scp-2/Scp-x contributed to a sex-dependent hepatic accumulation of dietary phytol and BCFA.

published proceedings

  • Arch Biochem Biophys

author list (cited authors)

  • McIntosh, A. L., Storey, S. M., Huang, H., Kier, A. B., & Schroeder, F.

citation count

  • 2

complete list of authors

  • McIntosh, Avery L||Storey, Stephen M||Huang, Huan||Kier, Ann B||Schroeder, Friedhelm

publication date

  • January 2017