Feline obesity puts many cats at risk for comorbidities such as hepatic lipidosis, diabetes mellitus, urinary tract diseases, and others. Restricted feeding of specially formulated diets may improve feline health and safely support weight loss while maintaining lean mass. The objective of this study was to determine the effects of restricted intake of weight control diets on weight loss, body composition, voluntary physical activity, serum metabolic and inflammatory markers, and fecal metabolites and microbiota of obese cats. Twenty-four obese adult domestic shorthair cats [body weight (BW) = 5.51 ± 0.92 kg; body condition score (BCS) = 8.44 ± 0.53] were used. A leading grocery brand diet was fed during a 4-wk baseline to identify intake needed to maintain BW. After baseline (wk 0), cats were allotted to one of two weight control diets (DRY or CAN) and fed to lose 1.5% BW per wk for 18 wk. At baseline and 6, 12, 18 wk after weight loss, dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry scans were performed, blood and fecal samples were collected, and voluntary physical activity was measured. Change from baseline data were analyzed statistically using the Mixed Models procedure of SAS, with P<0.05 being significant and P<0.10 being trends. BW was reduced by 1.54 ± 0.51% per wk. Restricted feeding of both diets led to BW (P<0.01) and fat mass loss (P<0.01), reduced BCS (P<0.01), reduced leptin (P<0.01) and insulin (P<0.01) concentrations, and increased superoxide dismutase (P<0.01) and active ghrelin (P<0.01) concentrations. Change from baseline fecal scores were reduced (P<0.01) with restricted feeding and weight loss, while total short-chain fatty acid, acetate, and propionate concentration reductions were greater (P<0.05) in cats fed CAN than those fed DRY. Fecal bacterial alpha diversity measures increased (P<0.01) with restricted feeding and weight loss. Fecal bacterial beta diversity was altered by time in all cats, with wk 0 being different (P<0.05) than wk 6, 12, and 18. Change from baseline relative abundances of 3 fecal bacterial phyla and over 30 fecal bacterial genera were impacted (P<0.05) or tended to be impacted (P<0.10) by dietary treatment. Our data demonstrate that restricted feeding of both weight control diets was an effective means for weight loss in obese adult domestic cats. Some changes were also impacted by diet, highlighting the importance of diet formulation and format, and nutrient composition in weight control diets.

中文翻译：

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限制喂养控制体重的饮食会诱导体重减轻并影响身体成分、自愿体育活动、血液代谢物、激素和氧化应激标志物，以及肥胖猫的粪便代谢物和微生物群


猫科动物肥胖使许多猫面临患肝脂质沉积症、糖尿病、尿路疾病等合并症的风险。限制特殊配方饮食的喂养可以改善猫科动物的健康，并在保持瘦体重的同时安全地支持减肥。本研究的目的是确定限制摄入体重控制饮食对肥胖猫的体重减轻、身体成分、自主体力活动、血清代谢和炎症标志物以及粪便代谢物和微生物群的影响。使用了 24 只肥胖的成年家毛猫 [体重 （BW） = 5.51 ± 0.92 公斤;身体状况评分 （BCS） = 8.44 ± 0.53]。在 4 周的基线期间喂养领先的杂货品牌饮食，以确定维持 BW 所需的摄入量。基线后 （第 0 周），将猫分配到两种体重控制饮食 （DRY 或 CAN） 中的一种，并在 18 周内每周减少 1.5% 的 BW。在基线和减肥后 6 、 12 、 18 周，进行双能 X 射线吸收测定扫描，收集血液和粪便样本，并测量自主体力活动。使用 SAS 的混合模型程序对基线数据的变化进行统计分析，其中 P<0.05 显著，P<0.10 为趋势。体重每周减少 1.54 ± 0.51%。两种日粮限制喂养导致体重 （P<0.01） 和脂肪量减少 （P<0.01），BCS 降低 （P<0.01），瘦素 （P<0.01） 和胰岛素 （P<0.01） 浓度降低，超氧化物歧化酶 （P<0.01） 和活性生长素释放肽 （P<0.01） 浓度升高。限制喂养和体重减轻后，粪便评分相对于基线的变化降低 （P<0.01），而喂养 CAN 的猫比喂养 DRY 的猫总短链脂肪酸、乙酸盐和丙酸盐浓度降低更大 （P<0.05）。 粪便细菌 α 多样性指标增加 （P<0.01） 随着喂养和体重减轻的增加。所有猫的粪便细菌 β 多样性都随着时间的推移而改变，第 0 周与第 6 周、第 12 周和第 18 周不同 （P<0.05）。饮食处理影响 3 个粪细菌门和 30 多个粪细菌属的相对丰度相对于基线的变化 （P<0.05） 或趋于受到影响 （P<0.10）。我们的数据表明，两种体重控制饮食的限制喂养是肥胖成年家猫减肥的有效手段。一些变化也受到饮食的影响，突出了饮食配方和形式以及营养成分在体重控制饮食中的重要性。