Associations between feeding and glucagon-like peptide-2 in healthy ponies.
Authors: Sibthorpe Poppy E M, Fitzgerald Danielle M, Sillence Martin N, de Laat Melody A
Journal: Equine veterinary journal
Summary
# Editorial Summary: GLP-2 and Metabolic Responses in Ponies Glucagon-like peptide-2 (GLP-2), a gut hormone released during feeding, has been hypothesised to contribute directly to equine hyperinsulinaemia, yet its secretory patterns and metabolic effects remain poorly characterised in equines. Sibthorpe and colleagues conducted a two-part investigation: first documenting endogenous GLP-2 concentrations across 24 hours in seven healthy ponies, then administering synthetic GLP-2 (75 µg/kg bodyweight, twice daily for 10 days) to ten ponies in a randomised cross-over trial to measure glucose and insulin responses before and after treatment. Endogenous GLP-2 peaked at approximately fourfold above overnight levels following meals containing 88–180 g non-structural carbohydrate, ranging up to 1.95 ng/mL. Whilst synthetic GLP-2 treatment successfully elevated circulating peptide concentrations by 28.6% and produced a larger three-hour area under the curve, it unexpectedly decreased peak postprandial glucose by 7% (from 5.33 to 5.0 mmol/L) without affecting insulin secretion or glucose area under the curve. For equine practitioners managing insulin dysregulation and metabolic disease, these findings suggest that GLP-2 itself is unlikely a primary driver of hyperinsulinaemia in healthy animals, though the authors acknowledge that alternative dosing strategies and investigation in metabolically compromised populations may yield different outcomes.
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Practical Takeaways
- •GLP-2 does not worsen post-prandial glucose or insulin responses in healthy ponies, suggesting it may not directly drive hyperinsulinaemia development
- •Further research using alternative GLP-2 dosing strategies is needed before considering therapeutic applications in metabolically dysregulated horses
- •Understanding GLP-2's normal secretion patterns provides baseline data for investigating its role in equine metabolic disease
Key Findings
- •Endogenous GLP-2 concentrations ranged from <0.55 to 1.95 ng/mL with peak responses ~4-fold higher than overnight nadir following meals with 88-180g non-structural carbohydrate
- •Synthetic GLP-2 administration (75 μg/kg BW) increased peak plasma GLP-2 by 28.6% and AUC over 3 hours post-feeding
- •GLP-2 treatment decreased peak blood glucose responses by 7% (from 5.33 to 5.0 mmol/L) but had no effect on insulin secretion or glucose AUC
- •Diurnal GLP-2 secretion pattern in ponies was similar to other species with no apparent daylight effect