Fig. 2.

Metabolic adaptations of carbohydrate metabolism in livers of pregnant (n = 8) vs. non-pregnant (n = 7) rats. (A–C) Uptake rates of fructose (A), galactose (B), and glycerol (C) in dependence on substrate availability. Corresponding maximal capacities are depicted by the box plots on the right. The center lines represent the median, the boxes represent the interquartile range, and the whiskers are defined by values within 1.5 times the interquartile range. Outliers are represented as dots. Blue boxes show control livers, and red depict livers of pregnant animals. Black and red bars indicate significant differences assessed by a two-sided t-test with a p-value <0.05 and 0.01, respectively. (D–F) Metabolic functions under a wide range of physiological conditions: Glucose exchange (D), glycogen storage (E), and glycerol uptake (F) in dependence on plasma glucose availability. Blue curves depict control livers, while red curves depict the livers of pregnant animals. Solid lines depict mean values for each group, and shaded areas depict the standard variation. Box plots on the right depict metabolic functions under fed (12 mM plasma glucose) and fasted conditions (3 mM plasma glucose). Glucose exchange switches from gluconeogenesis (negative values) to glycolysis as plasma glucose levels increase. Glycolytic activity under fed conditions is decreased in the livers of pregnant animals. Glycogen storage increases with increased glucose availability but is much less pronounced in the livers of pregnant animals. Glycerol uptake is higher in pregnant rats, especially at high plasma glucose levels. (For interpretation of the references to color in this figure legend, the reader is referred to the Web version of this article.)