Inhibition of the mTORC1 pathway alleviates adipose tissue fibrosis.

Background: Adipose fibrosis is a major factor of adipose dysfunction, which causes metabolic dysfunction during obesity, but its molecular mechanisms are poorly understood. This study investigated the role and potential mechanisms of mTORC1 in obesity-induced adipose fibrosis.

Methods: ob/ob mice were injected with rapamycin or the same volume of normal saline.

Berberine Ameliorates Obesity by Inducing GDF15 Secretion by Brown Adipocytes.

Berberine (BBR), which is a compound derived from the Chinese medicinal plant Coptis chinensis, promotes weight loss, but the molecular mechanisms are not well understood. Here, we show that BBR increases the serum level of growth differentiation factor 15 (GDF15), which is a stress response cytokine that can reduce food intake and lower body weight in diet-induced obese (DIO) mice. The body weight and food intake of DIO mice were decreased after BBR treatment, and the weight change was negatively correlated with the serum GDF15 level.

Dihydromyricetin ameliorates diet-induced obesity and promotes browning of white adipose tissue by upregulating IRF4/PGC-1α.

Background: Promoting the browning of white adipose tissue (WAT) is a promising approach for the treatment of obesity and related comorbidities because it increases energy expenditure. In this study, we investigated whether Dihydromyricetin (DHM), a flavonoid component, could ameliorate diet-induced obesity through promoting the browning of WAT.

Methods: Male C57BL/6 J mice were received a high-fat diet (HFD) to induce obesity and subsequently were treated with DHM (100 mg/kg/day) or vehicle for 4 weeks.

Bola3 Regulates Beige Adipocyte Thermogenesis Maintaining Mitochondrial Homeostasis and Lipolysis.

Mitochondrial iron-sulfur (Fe-S) cluster is an important cofactor for the maturation of Fe-S proteins, which are ubiquitously involved in energy metabolism; however, factors facilitating this process in beige fat have not been established. Here, we identified BolA family member 3 (Bola3), as one of 17 mitochondrial Fe-S cluster assembly genes, was the most significant induced gene in the browning program of white adipose tissue. Using lentiviral-delivered shRNA , we determined that Bola3 deficiency inhibited thermogenesis activity without affecting lipogenesis in differentiated beige adipocytes.