Thesis (M. Sc.)--Laurentian University, 2000. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 68-78).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Wisconsin--Madison, 1928. / Typescript. Vita. Includes reprints of two journal articles by the author from Journal of agricultural research, and Genetics. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M.Soc.Sc.)--University of Waikato, 2006. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 108-115)

Thesis (M.S.)--University of North Carolina at Greensboro, 2007. / Title from PDF title page screen. Advisor: Dennis LaJeunesse; submitted to the Dept. of Biology. Includes bibliographical references (p. 23-26).

Thesis (M.S.)--Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, 1994. / Vita. Abstract. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 105-115). Also available via the Internet.

CURRENTLY UNDER EMBARGO UNTIL THE 26/4/2019: Type 2 diabetes is a metabolic disorder characterised by inflammation, insulin resistance and the inability of pancreatic β-cells to secrete enough insulin to produce a physiological effect. Obesity and high levels of triacylglycerol’s are associated with the development of Type 2 diabetes. Adipose tissue is an active endocrine organ that secretes various protein and peptide hormones, known as adipokines, which mediate important metabolic functions. In an insulin resistant and hyperglycaemic state, levels of anti-inflammatory adipokines, adiponectin, are reduced, whereas levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines, interleukin-6 and interleukin-1β, are elevated; this results in a shift from an anti- to a pro-inflammatory state that is accompanied by dysfunction and apoptosis of the pancreatic β-cells. Cannabis sativa L. has been traditionally used as an anti-inflammatory agent in Southern Africa, specifically treating snakebites, fever and malaria. Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol is the main psychoactive compound derived from C. sativa, whereas the other major cannabinoids, cannabinol and cannabidiol, have shown anti-inflammatory and sedative properties respectively. Marrubiin is a compound derived from the plant Leonotis leonurus L. and has been traditionally used as an anti-inflammatory and anti-diabetic agent. To determine the effects of these compounds in a hyperglycaemic state, pre- and differentiated mouse adipocytes (3T3-L1 cells) were exposed for seven and fourteen days to the following treatments: Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol, cannabidiol, cannabinol, marrubiin, anandamide (an endogenous endocannabinoid) and cannabis extract, individually and in combination, under normal glucose and hyperglycaemic conditions. Levels of adiponectin, interleukin-6, leptin, tumour-necrosis factor-α and interleukin-1β were quantified using mouse enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay kits and Oil Red O staining was carried out to determine lipid distribution and lipid droplet characteristics. Results indicate that various cannabinoids, in combination, mediate an anti-inflammatory effect by decreasing the expression of various pro-inflammatory cytokines, which may have allowed for a shift from a pro- to an anti-inflammatory state by these compounds, and may also contribute to the reduction of lipid, which may be used as a supplementary option to current diabetic treatment regimes.

Exaggerated postprandial lipaemia has been implicated in the development of atherosclerosis. Thus, by reducing postprandial TAG concentrations, exercise may play a role in delaying atherogenic progression. This thesis sought to explore the qualitative nature of, and the mechanisms behind, the moderate exercise-induced attenuation to postprandial lipaemia. Before the experimental studies commenced, a reproducibility study was undertaken. This showed that in a group of eight middle-aged men, the postprandial plasma TAG response differed by only 1.9 ± 5.1 % (mean ± standard error) on a testretest basis, indicating that the oral fat tolerance test had enough precision to detect the effect of exercise on TAG metabolism. Previous work suggested that the exercise-induced reduction to lipaemia was linked to the energy expended by exercise. As the attenuation may have been mediated by energy deficit, rather than exercise per se, a study comparing the effect of a 90-minute moderate exercise session with an equivalent dietary-induced energy deficit on postprandial lipid metabolism was undertaken, in a group of eleven postmenopausal women. This showed that the reduction in postprandial lipaemia elicited by exercise was far greater than that elicited by intake-restriction (20 % vs. 7 %). The second experimental study aimed to establish the effect of a 90-minute moderate exercise session on postprandial chylomicron- and very-Iow-density lipoprotein (VLDL)-TAG concentrations, and its effect on exogenous (through use of a l3e-Iabelled lipid) and endogenous fat oxidation, in a group oftwelve middle-aged men. Exercise reduced postprandial lipaemia by 23 %, and over three-quarters of this reduction was due to lower VLDL-TAG concentrations. Increases in endogenous fat oxidation accounted for over half of the increase in postprandial fat oxidation. In the third experimental study, the effect of a 90-minutes moderate exercise session on Intralipid clearance, and postprandial lipaemia, was determined in a group of eight middle-aged men. Exercise attenuated postprandial lipaemia by 18 %, but did not increase Intralipid clearance. Taken together, these data imply that moderate exercise predominantly reduced postprandial TAG concentrations by reducing hepatic VLDL secretion, rather than increasing TAG clearance, and this effect is not mediated by whole-body energy deficit. In addition, this work has shown that moderate exercise is effective at attenuating postprandial lipaemia in middle-aged men and postmenopausal women.

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