Dietary supplementation with 2-deoxy-D-glucose improves cardiovascular and neuroendocrine stress adaptation in rats

Dietary restriction and physical exercise can enhance stress resistance and reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease. We investigated the effects of dietary supplementation with 2-deoxy-d-glucose (2-DG), a glucose analog that limits glucose availability at the cellular level, on cardiovascular and neuroendocrine responses to stress in rats. Young adult male Sprague-Dawley rats were implanted with telemetry probes to monitor blood pressure (BP), heart rate, body temperature, and body movements. These variables were measured at designated times during a 6-mo period in rats fed control and 2-DG-supplemented (0.4% 2-DG, fed ad libitum on a schedule of 2 days on the diet and 1 day off the diet) diets during unperturbed conditions and during and after immobilization stress or cold-water swim stress. Rats fed the 2-DG diet exhibited significant reductions in resting BP, attenuated BP responses during stress, and accelerated recovery to baseline after stress. Plasma concentrations of ACTH and corticosterone were elevated under nonstress conditions in rats fed the 2-DG diet and exhibited differential responses to single (enhanced response) and multiple (reduced response) stress sessions compared with rats fed control rat chow ad libitum. The 2-DG diet improved glucose metabolism, as indicated by decreased concentrations of blood glucose and insulin under nonstress conditions, but glucose and insulin responses to stress were maintained. We conclude that improvements in some cardiovascular risk factors and stress adaptation in rats maintained on a 2-DG-supplemented diet are associated with reduced neuroendocrine responses to the stressors.