Studying Brown Adipose Tissue in a Human Context.

New treatments for obesity and associated metabolic disease are increasingly warranted with the growth of the obesity pandemic. Brown adipose tissue (BAT) may represent a promising therapeutic target to treat obesity, as this tissue has been shown to regulate energy expenditure through non-shivering thermogenesis. Three different strategies could be employed for therapeutic targeting of human thermogenic adipocytes: increasing BAT mass through stimulation of BAT progenitors, increasing BAT function through regulatory pathways, and increasing WAT browning through promotion of beige adipocyte formation.

Publisher Correction: Enhanced β-adrenergic signalling underlies an age-dependent beneficial metabolic effect of PI3K p110α inactivation in adipose tissue.

An amendment to this paper has been published and can be accessed via a link at the top of the paper.

Gain of Metabolic Benefit with Ablation of miR-149-3p from Subcutaneous Adipose Tissue in Diet-Induced Obese Mice.

The global rise in obesity has become a public health crisis. During the onset of obesity, disrupted catecholamine signals have been described to contribute to excess fat accumulation, however, the molecular and metabolic change of subcutaneous adipose tissue (SAT) upon chronic high-fat feeding has rarely been investigated. Here, we show that chronic high-fat feeding caused a significant decrease in the expression of thermogenic genes and acquisition of partial deleterious features of visceral fat in SAT.

Enhanced β-adrenergic signalling underlies an age-dependent beneficial metabolic effect of PI3K p110α inactivation in adipose tissue.

The insulin/IGF-1 signalling pathway is a key regulator of metabolism and the rate of ageing. We previously documented that systemic inactivation of phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K) p110α, the principal PI3K isoform that positively regulates insulin signalling, results in a beneficial metabolic effect in aged mice. Here we demonstrate that deletion of p110α specifically in the adipose tissue leads to less fat accumulation over a significant part of adult life and allows the maintenance of normal glucose tolerance despite insulin resistance.

Brown and beige fat: From molecules to physiology and pathophysiology.

The adipose organ portrays adipocytes of diverse tones: white, brown and beige, each type with distinct functions. Adipocytes orchestrate their adaptation and expansion to provide storage to excess nutrients, the quick mobilisation of fuel to supply peripheral functional demands, insulation, and, in their thermogenic form, heat generation to maintain core body temperature. Thermogenic adipocytes could be targets for anti-obesity and anti-diabetic therapeutic approaches aiming to restore adipose tissue functionality and increase energy dissipation.

Fed-EXosome: extracellular vesicles and cell-cell communication in metabolic regulation.

Extracellular vesicles (EVs) have emerged as a novel messaging system of the organism, mediating cell-cell and interorgan communication. Through their content of proteins and nucleic acids, as well as membrane proteins and lipid species, EVs can interact with and modulate the function of their target cells. The regulation of whole-body metabolism requires cross-talk between key metabolic tissues including adipose tissue (AT), the liver and skeletal muscle.