Insulin-like growth factor-I stimulates both cell growth and lipogenesis during differentiation of human mesenchymal stem cells into adipocytes.

Insulin is known to regulate adipocyte differentiation and lipid accumulation, but the specific mechanism by which precursor cells differentiate into adipocytes is not clearly understood. This study evaluated the role of the IGF-I receptor in the process of adipocyte differentiation in bone marrow-derived human mesenchymal stem cells (HMSCs). The results demonstrated that nanomolar concentrations of IGF-I adequately replaced micromolar concentrations of insulin in supporting differentiation and lipid accumulation in HMSCs.