The glucagon receptor is required for the adaptive metabolic response to fasting.

Abstract

Glucagon receptor (Gcgr) signaling maintains hepatic glucose production during the fasting state; however, the importance of the Gcgr for lipid metabolism is unclear. We show here that fasted Gcgr-/- mice exhibit a significant increase in hepatic triglyceride secretion and fasting increases fatty acid oxidation (FAO) in wild-type (WT) but not in Gcgr-/- mice. Moreover fasting upregulated the expression of FAO-related hepatic mRNA transcripts in Gcgr+/+ but not in Gcgr-/- mice. Exogenous glucagon administration reduced plasma triglycerides in WT mice, inhibited TG synthesis and secretion, and stimulated FA beta oxidation in Gcgr+/+ hepatocytes. The actions of glucagon on TG synthesis and FAO were abolished in PPARalpha-/- hepatocytes. These findings demonstrate that the Gcgr receptor is required for control of lipid metabolism during the adaptive metabolic response to fasting.