Effect of eschericia coli endotoxin on tissue lipoprotein lipase activities in chickens

Abstract

1. Four‐week‐old broiler chickens were injected intravenously with from 0.01 to 1 mg of E. coli endotoxin/kg body weight or with saline.

2. At all doses used endotoxin markedly depressed food intake and lipoprotein lipase activities in muscle and adipose tissue within 8 h. Heart lipoprotein lipase activity was significantly depressed only at doses of 0.1 mg endotoxin/kg body weight or greater.

3. Treatment of birds with 0.3 mg endotoxin/kg body weight reduced post‐heparin lipoprotein lipase activity to 0.13 of that in control birds in 8 h.

4. Endotoxin generally depressed plasma very‐low‐density lipoprotein concentration. Plasma non‐esterified fatty acid concentration was significantly elevated only in birds given 1 mg endotoxin/kg body weight.

5. Fatty acid synthetase activity in the liver of endotoxin‐treated birds was significantly lower than in control birds 16 h after administration of endoxin, but not after 8 h.

6. These results show that tissue lipoprotein lipase activity in birds is very responsive to E. coli endotoxin, as in mammals. Hypertrigly‐ceridaemia occurs only occasionally in endotoxin‐treated chickens, most probably because of the particularly close relationship between food intake and hepatic lipoprotein synthesis in birds.

Notes

Formerly part of the AFRC Poultry Research Centre.