Substrate cycling between de novo lipogenesis and lipid oxidation: a thermogenic mechanism against skeletal muscle lipotoxicity and glucolipotoxicity

Life is a combustion, but how the major fuel substrates that sustain human life compete and interact with each other for combustion has been at the epicenter of research into the pathogenesis of insulin resistance ever since Randle proposed a 'glucose-fatty acid cycle' in 1963. Since then, several features of a mutual interaction that is characterized by both reciprocality and dependency between glucose and lipid metabolism have been unravelled, namely: 1. the inhibitory effects of elevated concentrations of fatty acids on glucose oxidation (via inactivation of mitochondrial pyruvate dehydrogenase or via desensitization of insulin-mediated glucose transport), 2. the inhibitory effects of elevated concentrations of glucose on fatty acid oxidation (via malonyl-CoA regulation of fatty acid entry into the mitochondria), and more recently 3. the stimulatory effects of elevated concentrations of glucose on de novo lipogenesis, that is, synthesis of lipids from glucose (via SREBP1c regulation of glycolytic and lipogenic enzymes). This paper first revisits the physiological significance of these mutual interactions between glucose and lipids in skeletal muscle pertaining to both blood glucose and intramyocellular lipid homeostasis. It then concentrates upon emerging evidence, from calorimetric studies investigating the direct effect of leptin on thermogenesis in intact skeletal muscle, of yet another feature of the mutual interaction between glucose and lipid oxidation: that of substrate cycling between de novo lipogenesis and lipid oxidation. It is proposed that this energy-dissipating substrate cycling that links glucose and lipid metabolism to thermogenesis could function as a 'fine-tuning' mechanism that regulates intramyocellular lipid homeostasis, and hence contributes to the protection of skeletal muscle against lipotoxicity

Expression of the thermogenic nuclear hormone receptor coactivator PGC-1alpha is reduced in the adipose tissue of morbidly obese subjects.

Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma coactivator 1alpha (PGC1alpha) is an accessory protein which can potentiate the transcriptional activation function of many nuclear hormone receptors. Its tissue distribution and physiological studies suggest that its principal in vivo roles are to promote cold-induced thermogenesis, mitochondrial biogenesis, hepatic gluconeogenesis, and fatty acid beta-oxidation. It is expressed in the white adipose tissue of both humans and rodents, and in rodents it has been suggested to mediate in part the leptin-induced conversion of white adipocytes from fat storing to fat oxidising cells. In this study, quantitative real-time PCR has been used in human tissue to demonstrate that (1) PGC1alpha mRNA levels in subcutaneous fat are three-fold lower in morbidly obese than in slim subjects; (2) there are no differences in PGC1alpha mRNA between omental and subcutaneous mature adipocytes; (3) there is a robust induction of PGC1alpha expression during subcutaneous human preadipocyte differentiation ex vivo. Whether low PGC1alpha expression is a prelude to the development of obesity, or a consequence of that obesity, attempts to upregulate endogenous white adipose tissue expression may prove a valuable new avenue to explore in obesity therapy

Activators of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma have depot-specific effects on human preadipocyte differentiation.

Activation of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor (PPAR) gamma, a nuclear receptor highly expressed in adipocytes, induces the differentiation of murine preadipocyte cell lines. Recently, thiazolidinediones (TZDs), a novel class of insulin-sensitizing compounds effective in the treatment of non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM) have been shown to bind to PPARgamma with high affinity. We have examined the effects of these compounds on the differentiation of human preadipocytes derived from subcutaneous (SC) and omental (Om) fat. Assessed by lipid accumulation, glycerol 3-phosphate dehydrogenase activity, and mRNA levels, subcultured preadipocytes isolated from either SC or Om depots did not differentiate in defined serum-free medium. Addition of TZDs (BRL49653 or troglitazone) or 15-deoxyDelta12,14prostaglandin J2 (a natural PPARgamma ligand) enhanced markedly the differentiation of preadipocytes from SC sites, assessed by all three criteria. The rank order of potency of these agents in inducing differentiation matched their ability to activate transcription via human PPARgamma. In contrast, preadipocytes from Om sites in the same individuals were refractory to TZDs, although PPARgamma was expressed at similar levels in both depots. The mechanism of this depot-specific TZD response is unknown. However, given the association between Om adiposity and NIDDM, the site-specific responsiveness of human preadipocytes to TZDs may be involved in the beneficial effects of these compounds on in vivo insulin sensitivity

Potentials and pitfalls of fluorescent quantum dots for biological imaging

Abstract: We describe a new non-contact high capacity optical tagging technique based on the use of nanostructured barcodes. The tags are generated from a number of superimposed diffraction gratings. Capacity for up to 68,000 distinguishable tags has been demonstrated, however current technological capability shall allow encoding of up to 10 9 distinguishable particles, each of which is only 100µm long