support-information-section).

The liver is the primary metabolic organ involved in the endogenous production of glucose through glycogenolysis and gluconeogenesis. Hepatic glucose production (HGP) is increased via neural‐hormonal mechanisms such as increases in catecholamines. To date, the effects of prior exercise training on the hepatic response to epinephrine have not been fully elucidated. To examine the role of epinephrine signaling on indices of HGP in trained mice, male C57BL/6 mice were either subjected to 12 days of voluntary wheel running or remained sedentary. Epinephrine, or vehicle control, was injected intraperitoneally on day 12 prior to sacrifice with blood glucose being measured 15 min postinjection. Epinephrine caused a larger glucose response in sedentary mice and this was paralleled by a greater reduction in liver glycogen in sedentary compared to trained mice. There was a main effect of epinephrine to increase the phosphorylation of protein kinase‐A (p‐PKA) substrates in the liver, which was driven by increases in the sedentary, but not trained, mice. Similarly, epinephrine‐induced increases in the mRNA expression of hepatic adrenergic receptors (Adra1/2a, Adrb1), and glucose‐6‐phosphatase (G6pc) were greater in sedentary compared to trained mice. The mRNA expression of cAMP‐degrading enzymes phosphodiesterase 3B and 4B (Pde3b, Pde4b) was greater in trained compared to sedentary mice. Taken together, our data suggest that prior exercise training reduces the liver's response to epinephrine. This could be beneficial in the context of training‐induced glycogen sparing during exercise.

Growth differentiating factor-15 (GDF15) is expressed, and secreted, from a wide range of tissues and serves as a marker of cellular stress. A key transcriptional regulator of this hormone is the endoplasmic reticulum stress protein, CHOP (C/EBP Homologous Protein). Exercise increases GDF15 levels but the underlying mechanisms of this are not known. To test whether CHOP regulates GDF15 during exercise we used various models of altered ER stress. We examined the effects of acute exercise on circulating GDF15 and GDF15 mRNA expression in liver, triceps skeletal muscle, and epididymal white adipose tissue and examined the GDF15 response to acute exercise in lean and high-fat diet-induced obese mice, sedentary and exercise trained mice, and CHOP deficient mice. We found that obesity augments exercise-induced circulating GDF15 although ER stress markers were similar in lean and obese mice. Exercise-induced GDF15 was increased in trained and sedentary mice that ran at the same relative exercise intensity, despite trained mice being protected against increased markers of ER stress. Finally, exercise-induced increases in GDF15 at the tissue and whole-body level were intact in CHOP deficient mice. Together, these results provide evidence that exercise-induced GDF15 expression and secretion occurs independent of ER stress/CHOP.

The landscape of nutrition advice is vast and full of misinformation. A primary source of nutrition advice in Canada comes from the Canadian Food Guide, however, many questions remain regarding the reach and accessibility of the food guide. Specifically, is the population most likely to receive and use this information, the population that needs it the most? Are there barriers to following this guide that Health Canada has failed to address? Is there evidence supporting the efficacy of this food guide in populations at risk for nutrition misinformation or diet-related preventable diseases? This commentary reviews the past research regarding efficacy of previous food guides and highlights potential barriers preventing equal and accessible use of Canada’s Food Guide.

Catecholamines increase liver glucose production at least in part through increases in glycogenolysis and gluconeogenesis. To date, the effects of prior exercise training on the liver’s response to epinephrine, in vivo, have not been fully elucidated. To examine the role of epinephrine signaling on indices of liver glucose production in trained mice, male C57BL/6 mice were subject to either 12 days of voluntary wheel running (TR) or remained sedentary (SED). Epinephrine (0.5 mg/kg body weight), or vehicle were injected intraperitoneally following 12 days of training and tissues harvested 15 minutes post‐injection. The rise in blood glucose following epinephrine injection was significantly blunted in trained compared to sedentary mice and this was paralleled by a blunted reduction in liver glycogen in trained mice. There was a main effect of epinephrine to increase the phosphorylation of protein kinase‐A substrates (pPKAs), which was driven by increases in the sedentary, but not trained, mice. Similarly, epinephrine‐induced increases in the mRNA expression of α‐ and β‐adrenergic receptor 1 and 2 and glucose‐6‐phosphatase were greater in SED compared to TR mice. Exercise and epinephrine decreased serum insulin levels and increased glucagon levels, however, there were no differences within epinephrine treated groups. Changes in phosphorylated AKT, AMPK, and phosphodiesterase 4B protein content, negative regulators of PKA signaling, do not explain the protective effects of exercise training against epinephrine induced increases in blood glucose and liver glycogen breakdown. Taken together our data suggest that prior exercise training reduces the liver’s response to epinephrine. This could be beneficial in the context of training‐induced sparing of glycogen during exercise. Support or Funding Information This work was funded, in part, through a National Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) grant to D.C.W., who is a Tier II Canada Research Chair in Lipids, Metabolism, and Health. H.A.D was supported by an Ontario Graduate Scholarship. G.L.M. was supported by an Ontario Graduate Scholarship and subsequently an NSERC Canada Graduate Scholarship. L.K.T. was supported by a Dairy Farmers of Ontario Doctoral Research Assistantship and an NSERC Postgraduate Scholarship.