Figure 6. Weekly prednisone treatment improved lipid metabolism in females but not males.

(A) Results from RNA sequencing analysis revealed increased expression of lipid metabolism–related genes in weekly prednisone–treated females compared with vehicle-treated females and weekly prednisone–treated males. (B) Body composition analysis after 4 weeks of treatment demonstrated reduced whole-body percentage fat mass in once-weekly prednisone–treated females, while comparably treated males had no change. (C and D) The visceral fat pad of weekly treated females was smaller than vehicle-treated females and weekly treated males (C) and the adipocytes in this fat pad had significantly reduced cross-sectional area (D). (E) Weekly treated females had an increased proportion of succinate dehydrogenase–positive (SDH⁺) fibers in the tibialis anterior compared with vehicle-treated females, while the males exhibited no change. Scale bars: 100 μm (D) and 50 μm (E). (F) Neither sex had changes in fiber type proportion following weekly treatment. Data in B, D, and E were analyzed with Mann-Whitney test.