Figure 3.
The effect of SST neuron ablation in proestrus depends on body mass or adiposity
(A) Regression analysis within proestrus (top panel) and estrus (bottom panel) across all ovary-intact animals reveals an interaction between body mass and nightly food intake in females. Significant negative correlations in wild-type animals are seen in the high-estradiol phase of proestrus but not in caspase-ablated females. Control n = 19, Ablated n = 21 across stages.
(B) Representative bright-field images of inguinal and gonadal white adipose tissue (iWAT & gWAT, respectively) in high and low body weight (BW) females. Scale bar = 100 μm.
(C) Terminal iWAT (left) and gWAT (right) adipocyte size both positively correlate with starting body weight regardless of TNSST neuron ablation (Interaction of slopes: iWAT F(1,22) = 0.2337 p = 0.6336, gWAT F(1,18) = 0.4552 p = 0.5085; difference in y-intercept: iWAT F(1,22) = 0.1417 p = 0.7103, gWAT F(1,18) = 0.000 p = 9971). Linear regression lines represent compiled data across ablation status. iWAT: Control n = 12, Ablated n = 14; gWAT: Control n = 11, Ablated n = 11. Linear regression ±95% CI; ANCOVA; ∗p < 0.05, ∗∗p < 0.01.