Elevated hypothalamic beacon gene expression in Psammomys obesus prone to develop obesity and type 2 diabetes

<b>Objective</b>: To investigate hypothalamic <i>beacon</i> gene expression at various developmental stages in genetically selected diabetes-resistant and diabetes-prone <i>Psammomys obesus</i>. In addition, effects of dietary energy composition on beacon gene expression were investigated in diabetes-prone <i>P. obesus</i>. <b>Methods</b>: Hypothalamic <i>beacon</i> gene expression was measured using TaqmanÔ fluorogenic PCR in 4-, 8- and 16-week-old animals from each genetically selected line. <b>Results</b>: Expression of <i>beacon</i> was elevated in the diabetes-prone compared with diabetes-resistant <i>P.</i> <i>obesus</i> at 4 weeks of age despite no difference in body weight between the groups. At 8 weeks of age, hypothalamic <i>beacon</i> gene expression was elevated in diabetes-prone animals fed a high-energy diet, and was correlated with serum insulin concentration. <b>Conclusion</b>: <i>P. obesus</i> with a genetic predisposition for the development of obesity and type 2 diabetes have elevated hypothalamic <i>beacon</i> gene expression at an early age. Overexpression of beacon may contribute to the development of obesity and insulin resistance in these animals.<br />