Sex-specific metabolic and central effects of GLP-1–estradiol conjugate in middle-aged rats on a standard or western diet

Abstract

Middle age represents a critical window for metabolic and cognitive health, particularly in the context of rising obesity and diabetes rates. Glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1)-based therapies, which regulate blood glucose and body weight, show sex-specific effects, with estradiol potentiating their metabolic benefits. However, research on GLP-1′s cognitive and neuroprotective roles has largely been conducted in males. Here, we investigated the effects of GLP-1 conjugated to estradiol (GE2) on metabolism, cognition, cytokine levels and neurogenesis in the dentate gyrus of middle-aged male and female rats fed a standard (SD) or Western (WD) diet. In both sexes, WD increased body weight and plasma leptin levels, regardless of sex. GE2 treatment led to weight loss, enhanced cued and contextual fear memory, reduced cytokine levels in the hippocampus in SD rats, and increased neurogenesis in the dorsal dentate gyrus (DG), regardless of sex. Sex-specific differences were observed in fat distribution, glucose regulation, central cytokine levels, and neuroplasticity after WD and GE2 treatment. In females only, GE2 reduced visceral (gonadal) fat, reduced cytokines in the dorsal hippocampus, and improved basal blood glucose in response to a WD. In males only, GE2 restored neurogenesis in the DG after WD exposure, and reduced cytokine levels in the amygdala. These findings suggest that although WD increased body weight and GE2 improved associative learning in both sexes, both WD and GE2 had differential affects on metabolic hormones, insulin regulation, cytokine levels and neuroplasticity. Our findings underscore the importance of sex-specific approaches in metabolic and neuroprotective therapeutics in middle age.