Diet-induced obesity increases NF-κB signaling in reporter mice

The nuclear factor (NF)-kappa B is a primary regulator of inflammatory responses and may be linked to pathology associated with obesity. We investigated the progression of NF-kappa B activity during a 12-week feeding period on a high-fat diet (HFD) or a low-fat diet (LFD) using NF-kappa B luciferase reporter mice. In vivo imaging of luciferase activity showed that NF-kappa B activity was higher in the HFD mice compared with LFD-fed mice. Thorax region of HFD females displayed fourfold higher activity compared with LFD females, while no such increase was evident in males. In male HFD mice, abdominal NF-kappa B activity was increased twofold compared with the LFD males, while females had unchanged NF-kappa B activity in the abdomen by HFD. HFD males, but not females, exhibited evident glucose intolerance during the study. In conclusion, HFD increased NF-kappa B activity in both female and male mice. However, HFD differentially increased activity in males and females. The moderate increase in abdomen of male mice may be linked to glucose intolerance.