Investigation of The Effects of Fatty Acids on Growth Hormone, Insulin-like Growth Factor 1, and Insulin- and Hormone-sensitive Lipase Levels in Rats

Objective: Several studies have investigated hormones such as growth hormone (GH), insulin (INS), insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1), and hormone- sensitive lipase (HSL). However, there is insufficient data on the effects of the combination of short-, medium-, and long-chain fatty acids on hormone concentrations in serum/tissue, including GH, INS, IGF-1, and HSL. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of butyric acid (BA), caprylic acid (CA), and oleic acid (OA) alone or in combination on GH, INS, IGF-1, and HSL secretion. Methods: Fifty-six male Wistar rats were used in the study. The animals were separated into 8 subgroups: control, BA, CA, OA, BA + CA, BA + OA, CA + OA, and BA + CA + OA groups. Fatty acids were administered orally to rats for 21 days. At the end of the study, GH, IGF, INS, and HSL levels were measured in serum using the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay method. Results: BA administration reduced GH, IGF-1, and INS levels but had no significant effect on HSL levels. CA administration increased HSL levels but had no significant effect on GH, INS, and IGF-1 levels. OA administration increased GH and HSL levels but had no significant effect on IGF-1 and INS levels. Conclusion: The combined use of fatty acids increased GH levels while decreasing INS, IGF-1, and HSL levels.