Pinealectomy Has No Effect on Diet‐Induced Thermogenesis and Brown Adipose Tissue Proliferation in Rats

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Abstract
The role of the pineal gland in diet‐induced thermogenesis (DIT) and growth of brown adipose tissue (BAT) in rats during voluntary overfeeding was studied using pinealectomized and sham‐pinealectomized rats. Overfeeding was induced by offering the animals a cafeteria‐diet (CD) which contained a selection of highly palatable food items. Rats which were fed CD had significantly increased interscapular brown adipose tissue (IBAT) mass and increased tail‐skin temperature indicating the importance of the tail in thermoregulation during DIT. Pinealectomy had no effect on the increase in tail‐skin temperature and deposition of IBAT, which were stimulated by CD feeding. These findings suggest that the pineal is not directly involved in modulating the metabolism of BAT in rats.