microRNA expression profiles in myocardium of diet-induced obesity rat. microRNA expression profiles in myocardium of diet-induced obesity rat

Diet induced obesity in rat was associated with myocardial dysfunction, hypertension and fibrosis. This study aimed to explore microRNA expression profiles in diet obesity-induced rat myocardium. Wistar rats were feed normal chow or high-fat diet for 20 weeks. After that, cardiac function was evaluated by echocardiography. Left ventricular myocardium was harvest to assess the extent of hypertension and fibrosis, meanwile, the left ventricular microRNA expression was analyzed using Agilent Rat miRNA microarray. Significant cardiac dysfunction, hypertension and fibrosis were found in diet-induced obesity rats as compared with normal diet rats. rno-miR-141-3p and rno-miR-144-3p were also significantly increased in myocardium of diet-induced obesity rat. These findings suggest that specific miRNA differences may contribute to the alteration in cardiac function, hypertension and fibrosis which responses to diet-induced obesity. Overall design: Wistar rats were randomly divided into two groups, which feed normal chow or high-fat diet for 20 weeks, respectively. Left ventricular myocardium was harvest to detect microRNA expression using microarray. Furthermore, miRNA differences were analyzed by comparing the microRNA expression in myocardium between rats fed normal diet and rats fed high-fat diet.