Lack of maternal exposure to somatostatin leads to diet-induced insulin and leptin resistance in mouse male offspring

Somatostatin (Sst) is an inhibitory regulator of many hormones. The prenatal environment impacts an offspring's risk to type 2 diabetes in adulthood. However, the effect of maternal Sst deficiency on glucose and insulin metabolism in offspring and metabolic disease risk in their adult life has been poorly understood. The study was to investigate the impact of a lack of maternal Sst exposure in mouse male and female offspring on diet-induced changes in glucose metabolism and adiposity. Sst knockout offspring, SstKO born to the Sst-heterozygous dams or SstKO-MSD born to the Sst-homozygous dams were fed either a regular diet (CD) or a high-fat diet (HFD) at 3-week-old for 15 weeks. Body weight and blood glucose levels were monitored. Glucose and insulin tolerance tests were performed. Plasma hormone levels and gene expression in the hypothalamus were investigated. The results demonstrated that only male SstKO-MSD offspring developed obesity accompanied by severe insulin and leptin resistance after HFD challenge. Insulin secretion was reduced in both basal and oral glucose-challenged conditions in the CD-fed male SstKO-MSD mice. A reduced ratio of islet area to pancreas area was noted in SstKO-MSD mice in both sexes. Plasma levels of glucagon, Glp1 and Pyy were elevated in both male and female SstKO and SstKO-MSD mice. mRNA expression of leptin receptor, FoxO1, Npy and Agrp was downregulated in male SstKO-MSD mice. These results demonstrate that a lack of fetal somatostatin exposure impairs the islet development in offspring and increases risk of obesity, insulin resistance and leptin resistance later in life.