Altered Brown Adipose Tissue and Na,K Pump Activities During Diet-Induced Obesity and Weight Loss in Rats

Brown adipose tissue (BAT) thermogenesis is an uncoupled ATPase-independent thermogenic mechanism. Ion transport by the Na,K pump is an ATPase-dependent thermogenic mechanism. Both have been proposed as mechanisms of altered energy expenditure during states of dietary energy surfeit and deficit. Our aim was to study these mechanisms during diet-induced obesity and weight loss. Over 36 weeks rats were fed lard- or tallow-based diets (63% energy as fat), or a control diet (12% energy as fat). During periods of restriction rats were fed 50% of the energy intake of controls in the form of a control diet. Several components of thermogenic response increased in rats eating high fat diets and decreased following dietary restriction. BAT activation occurred, particularly with a lard-based diet, as indicated by increased GDP binding and uncoupling protein (UCP) content. Na,K pump activity in thymocytes increased with the feeding of both high fat diets at some time points. Plasma T3 level increased in rats eating the lard-based diet and decreased with dietary restriction regardless of previous diet. Resting metabolic rate (RMR) of the animals was unchanged despite increases in these thermogenic components and was decreased in all groups following dietary restriction. Our results indicate a lack of any major role for activated BAT thermogenesis in mitigating the extent of the obesity induced by the high fat diets. The reasons for the differences in response to the two different sources of saturated fat, lard, and tallow, are not clear.

Exercise in a Pill: Feasibility of Energy Expenditure Targets

The possibility of developing a pill to increase energy expenditure is explored by examining the metabolic processes involved. Such a pill should be targeted at organ systems involved in facultative thermogenesis. In rodents, these are brown adipose tissue (BAT) and skeletal muscle. Since BAT-mediated thermogenesis is not available in adult humans, emphasis here is on skeletal muscle. A hypothesis is presented based on three known facts: (1) plasticity of skeletal muscle, with interconversion of fiber types that differ in their fuel efficiency; (2) presence of thyroxine 5'-deiodinase type 2 (TD2) in human skeletal muscle; (3) gradual increase in thermogenesis that occurs during rehabilitation after starvation, probably in muscle. A low capacity thermogenic system, muscle efficiency thermogenesis (MET), is proposed to occur as adipose stores refill during the transition from famine to feasting to obesity. This system involves increased activity of TD2 and a T3-induced increase in proportion of type II fibers, less efficient at rest and during activity. The protective effect of this system is probably overwhelmed by long-term eating in excess of energy needs. Better understanding of the complex remodeling of differentiated muscle fibers in the conversions proposed and of the regulation of TD2 activity in human skeletal muscle may reveal targets for increasing energy expenditure in humans. In addition, the possibility of exploiting the plasticity of the adipose organ, with conversion of white adipocytes in white adipose tissue to atypical brown adipocytes and increasing thermogenesis in them is considered as another potential target for increasing energy expenditure in humans.

Sim1 haploinsufficiency causes hyperphagia, obesity and reduction of the paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus

The bHLH-PAS transcription factor SIM1 is required for the development of the paraventricular nucleus (PVN) of the hypothalamus. Mice homozygous for a null allele of Sim1 (Sim1(-/-)) lack a PVN and die perinatally. In contrast, we show here that Sim1 heterozygous mice are viable but develop early-onset obesity, with increased linear growth, hyperinsulinemia and hyperleptinemia. Sim1(+/-) mice are hyperphagic but their energy expenditure is not decreased, distinguishing them from other mouse models of early-onset obesity such as deficiencies in leptin and melanocortin receptor 4. Quantitative histological comparison with normal littermates showed that the PVN of Sim1(+/-) mice contains on average 24% fewer cells without a selective loss of any identifiable major cell type. Since acquired lesions in the PVN also induce increased appetite without a decrease in energy expenditure, we propose that abnormalities of PVN development cause the obesity of Sim1(+/-) mice. Severe obesity was described recently in a patient with a balanced translocation disrupting SIM1. Pathways controlling the development of the PVN thus have the potential to cause obesity in both mice and humans.

Overexpression of UCP-3 in Skeletal Muscle of Mice Results in Increased Expression of Mitochondrial Thioesterase mRNA

Mice overexpressing human UCP-3 in skeletal muscle (UCP-3tg) are lean despite overeating, have increased metabolic rate, and their skeletal muscle mitochondria show increased proton conductance. The true function of UCP-3 however, has yet to be determined. It is assumed that UCP-3tg mice have increased fatty acid beta-oxidation to fuel their increased metabolic rate. In this study we have quantified skeletal muscle mRNA levels of a number of genes involved in fatty acid metabolism. mRNA levels of uncoupling protein-2, carnitine palmitoyl transferase-1beta and fatty acid binding proteins, and transporters were unchanged when compared to wild-type mice. Lipoprotein lipase mRNA was slightly, but significantly, increased by 50%. The most notable change in gene expression was a threefold increase in mitochondrial thioesterase (MTE-1) expression. In the face of a chronic increase in mitochondrial uncoupling these changes suggest that increased flux of fatty acids through the beta-oxidation pathway does not necessarily require marked changes in expression of genes involved in fatty acid metabolism. The large increase in MTE-1 both confirms the importance of this gene in situations where mitochondrial beta-oxidation is increased and supports the hypothesis that UCP-3 exports fatty acids generated by MTE-1 in the mitochondrion.

Mitochondrial efficiency: lessons learned from transgenic mice

Metabolic research has, like most areas of research in the life sciences, been affected dramatically by the application of transgenic technologies. Within the specific area of bioenergetics it has been thought that transgenic approaches in mice would provide definitive proof for some longstanding metabolic theories and assumptions. Here we review a number of transgenic approaches that have been used in mice to address theories of mitochondrial efficiency. The focus is largely on genes that affect the coupling of energy substrate oxidation to ATP synthesis, and thus, mice in which the uncoupling protein (Ucp) genes are modified are discussed extensively. Transgenic approaches have indeed provided proof-of-concept in some instances, but in many other instances they have yielded results that are in contrast to initial hypotheses. Many studies have also shown that genetic background can affect phenotypic outcomes, and that the upregulated expression of genes that are related to the modified gene often complicates the interpretation of findings.

The adipose tissue phenotype of hormone-sensitive lipase deficiency in mice

OBJECTIVE

To directly ascertain the physiological roles in adipocytes of hormone-sensitive lipase (HSL; E.C. 3.1.1.3), a multifunctional hydrolase that can mediate triacylglycerol cleavage in adipocytes.

RESEARCH METHODS AND PROCEDURES

We performed constitutive gene targeting of the mouse HSL gene (Lipe), subsequently studied the adipose tissue phenotype clinically and histologically, and measured lipolysis in isolated adipocytes.

RESULTS

Homozygous HSL-/- mice have no detectable HSL peptide or cholesteryl esterase activity in adipose tissue, and heterozygous mice have intermediate levels with respect to wild-type and deficient littermates. HSL-deficient mice have normal body weight but reduced abdominal fat mass compared with normal littermates. Histologically, both white and brown adipose tissues in HSL-/- mice show marked heterogeneity in cell size, with markedly enlarged adipocytes juxtaposed to cells of normal morphology. In isolated HSL-/- adipocytes, lipolysis is not significantly increased by beta3-adrenergic stimulation, but under basal conditions in the absence of added catecholamines, the lipolytic rate of isolated HSL-/- adipocytes is at least as high as that of cells from normal controls. Cold tolerance during a 48-hour period at 4 degrees C was similar in HSL-/- mice and controls. Overnight fasting was well-tolerated clinically by HSL-/- mice, but after fasting, liver triglyceride content was significantly lower in HSL-/- mice compared with wild-type controls.

CONCLUSIONS

In isolated fat cells, the lipolytic rate after beta-adrenergic stimulation is mainly dependent on HSL. However, the observation of a normal rate of lipolysis in unstimulated HSL-/- adipocytes suggests that HSL-independent lipolytic pathway(s) exist in fat. Physiologically, HSL deficiency in mice has a modest effect under normal fed conditions and is compatible with normal maintenance of core body temperature during cold stress. However, the lipolytic response to overnight fasting is subnormal.

Physiological role of UCP3 may be export of fatty acids from mitochondria when fatty acid oxidation predominates: an hypothesis

This hypothesis proposes a physiological role for uncoupling protein-3 (UCP3) in the export of fatty acid anions from muscle and brown adipose tissue (BAT) mitochondria when fatty acids are the predominant substrate being used. It proposes that excess acyl CoA within the mitochondria is hydrolyzed by a mitochondrial acyl CoA thioesterase, yielding fatty acid anion and CoASH. The fatty acid anion is exported to the cytosol by being carried across the inner mitochondrial membrane by UCP3. The CoASH is conserved within the mitochondrion to participate in other reactions for which it is needed during fatty acid oxidation in the beta-oxidation cycle and in the tricarboxylic acid cycle. The export of the fatty acid anion thus permits continued rapid fatty acid oxidation in the face of an oversupply. The hypothesis provides a logical explanation for the observed up-regulation of gene expression for UCP3 in muscle when there is a switch to fatty acid oxidation, as during fasting, and in BAT when fatty acid oxidation is stimulated, as during exposure to cold. It provides a plausible physiological role for UCP3 as a transporter protein, not as an uncoupling protein.

Multilocular fat cells in WAT of CL-316243-treated rats derive directly from white adipocytes

Multilocular, mitochondria-rich adipocytes appear in white adipose tissue (WAT) of rats treated with the beta3-adrenoceptor agonist, CL-316243 (CL). Objectives were to determine whether these multilocular adipocytes derived from cells that already existed in the WAT or from proliferation of precursor cells and whether new mitochondria contained in them were typical brown adipocyte mitochondria. Use of 5-bromodeoxyuridine to identify cells that had undergone mitosis during the CL treatment showed that most multilocular cells derived from cells already present in the WAT. Morphological techniques showed that at least a subpopulation of unilocular adipocytes underwent conversion to multilocular mitochondria-rich adipocytes. A small proportion of multilocular adipocytes ( approximately 8%) was positive for UCP1 by immunohistochemistry. Biochemical techniques showed that mitochondrial protein recovered from WAT increased 10-fold and protein isolated from brown adipose tissue (BAT) doubled in CL-treated rats. Stained gels showed a different protein composition of new mitochondria isolated from WAT from that of mitochondria isolated from BAT. Western blotting showed new mitochondria in WAT to contain both UCP1, but at a much lower concentration than in BAT mitochondria, and UCP3, at a higher concentration than that in BAT mitochondria. We hypothesize that multilocular adipocytes present at 7 days of CL treatment have two origins. First, most come from convertible unilocular adipocytes that become multilocular and make many mitochondria that contain UCP3. Second, some come from a cell that gives rise to more typical brown adipocytes that express UCP1.

Physiological roles of the leptin endocrine system: differences between mice and humans

Leptin is a 16-kDa cytokine secreted in humans primarily but not exclusively by adipose tissues. Its concentration in blood is usually proportional to body fat mass, but is higher in women than in men not only because of a different distribution of and greater fat mass in women, but also because testosterone reduces its level in men. Leptin features in different ways during the life span. It is synthesized in the ovary, transported in the oocyte, and made by both fetus and placenta, particularly during the last month of gestation. It is made by the lactating mammary gland and ingested by the newborn infant in its milk. The prime importance of leptin is realized at puberty when it is necessary for progression to a normal adult reproductive status in females. Fasting and chronic undernutrition result in a lower level of leptin in the blood. Lack of leptin results in hunger, ensuring that the individual eat to survive, and also inhibition of reproduction, until such time as food and fat stores are adequate to supply energy for pregnancy and lactation. Thus, leptin is important for survival of the individual and survival of the species. Although an extremely rare genetic absence of leptin induces hyperphagia and obesity in humans, as it does in mice, there appears to be little role for leptin in humans in ensuring that fat stores are not in excess of adequate, that is, in preventing obesity. The mouse differs from humans in many respects, in particular in the far more drastic ways it conserves energy when it very rapidly adapts to lack of food. These include not only suppression of reproduction but also lowering of its body temperature (torpor), suppressing its thyroid function, suppressing its growth, and increasing secretion of stress hormones (from the adrenal). This review concentrates on roles of leptin in human physiology and pathophysiology but also discusses why some observations on actions of leptin in mice are not applicable to humans.

Biochemical aspects of the uncoupling proteins: view from the chair

The discovery of nonshivering thermogenesis (NST) and its location in brown adipose tissue (BAT) in the 1950s to 1970s was soon followed by purification of the first uncoupling protein (UCP1) and later by cloning of the gene for UCP1 in 1985. The properties of UCP1 fully explained the long-known phenomenon of stimulated NST in BAT. An additional four 'uncoupling proteins' have been cloned in the last two years and are in search of phenomena they can explain. The four speakers in this first session of the symposium on uncoupling proteins reviewed biochemical properties of UCP1 and of three of the novel UCPs. Several suggested functions include mediation of the mitochondrial proton leak in tissues other than BAT, therefore a major role in energy expenditure, and protection against reactive oxygen species. Tools, techniques and information not yet available and for which further research is needed are reviewed.

Increased insulin sensitivity and obesity resistance in mice lacking the protein tyrosine phosphatase-1B gene

Protein tyrosine phosphatase-1B (PTP-1B) has been implicated in the negative regulation of insulin signaling. Disruption of the mouse homolog of the gene encoding PTP-1B yielded healthy mice that, in the fed state, had blood glucose concentrations that were slightly lower and concentrations of circulating insulin that were one-half those of their PTP-1B+/+ littermates. The enhanced insulin sensitivity of the PTP-1B-/- mice was also evident in glucose and insulin tolerance tests. The PTP-1B-/- mice showed increased phosphorylation of the insulin receptor in liver and muscle tissue after insulin injection in comparison to PTP-1B+/+ mice. On a high-fat diet, the PTP-1B-/- and PTP-1B+/- mice were resistant to weight gain and remained insulin sensitive, whereas the PTP-1B+/+ mice rapidly gained weight and became insulin resistant. These results demonstrate that PTP-1B has a major role in modulating both insulin sensitivity and fuel metabolism, thereby establishing it as a potential therapeutic target in the treatment of type 2 diabetes and obesity.

Mice expressing human but not murine beta3-adrenergic receptors under the control of human gene regulatory elements

Beta-adrenergic receptors (ARs) are expressed predominantly in adipose tissue, and beta3-selective agonists are effective anti-obesity drugs in rodents. Rodent and human beta3-ARs differ with respect to expression in white versus brown adipocytes as well as their ability to be stimulated by beta3-AR-selective agonists. Humans express beta3-AR mRNA abundantly in brown but not white adipocytes, while rodents express beta3-AR mRNA abundantly in both sites. To determine the basis for this difference, we have transgenically introduced 74 kilobases (kb) of human beta3-AR genomic sequence into gene knockout mice lacking beta3-ARs. Importantly, human beta3-AR mRNA was expressed only in brown adipose tissue (BAT) of transgenic mice, with little or no expression being detected in white adipose tissue (WAT), liver, stomach, small intestine, skeletal muscle, and heart. This pattern of expression differed from that observed in mice bearing a murine beta3-AR genomic transgene in which beta3-AR mRNA was expressed in both WAT and BAT, but not in other sites. Furthermore, we have transgenically introduced smaller human constructs containing -14.5 and -0.6 kb of upstream sequence into beta3-AR gene knockout mice. Both -14.5 and -0.6 kb constructs were expressed in BAT but not WAT. Thus, human but not murine cis-regulatory elements direct beta3-AR gene expression preferentially to brown adipocytes. Identification of responsible cis-regulatory element(s) and relevant trans-acting factor(s) should provide insight into mechanisms controlling human beta3-AR gene expression. In addition, the beta3-AR agonist, CGP-12177, stimulated oxygen consumption in mice expressing human but not murine beta3-ARs by 91% compared with only 49% in control beta3-AR gene knockout mice, demonstrating that the human beta3-AR can functionally couple with energy expenditure. These "humanized" mice should assist us in the development of drugs that may become effective anti-obesity agents in humans.

Temperature-dependent feeding: lack of role for leptin and defect in brown adipose tissue-ablated obese mice

The objective was to characterize the ability of control and transgenic brown adipose tissue (BAT)-ablated uncoupling protein diphtheria toxin A chain (UCP-DTA) mice to adjust food intake in relation to changes in environmental temperature and to assess the involvement of leptin in this adjustment. We measured serum leptin in mice from a previous study of UCP-DTA mice raised at thermoneutrality (35 degrees C) or at the usual rearing temperature (24 degrees C) from weaning [Melnyk, A., M. -E. Harper, and J. Himms-Hagen. Am. J. Physiol, 272 (Regulatory Integrative Comp. Physiol. 41): R1088-R1093, 1997] and extended the study by acclimating control and obese UCP-DTA mice at 18 wk of age to cold (14 degrees C) for up to 14 days. Leptin levels did not change in control mice at 14 degrees C; however, food intake increased threefold within 1 day and remained at this level. Serum leptin level was elevated in UCP-DTA mice at 24 degrees C compared with control mice at 24 degrees C; this elevated level decreased within 1 day at 14 degrees C and was not different from the level in control mice by 14 days. Food intake of UCP-DTA mice that were hyperphagic at 24 degrees C did not change during 7 days at 14 degrees C, then increased slowly. Similar low leptin levels were present in control mice raised at 24 or 35 degrees C and in UCP-DTA mice raised at 35 degrees C. Food intake of control mice raised at 24 degrees C was two times that of control mice raised at 35 degrees C. UCP-DTA mice raised at 35 degrees C ate the same low amount as control mice raised at 35 degrees C. UCP-DTA mice at 24 degrees C were hyperphagic relative to control mice at 24 degrees C yet had elevated leptin levels in their serum. Two principal conclusions are drawn. First, adjustment of food intake over a fourfold range by control mice acclimated to temperatures from 35 down to 14 degrees C is independent of changes in serum leptin levels. Second, this adjustment of food intake in relation to temperature is defective in the UCP-DTA mouse; the defect leads to hyperphagia at 24 degrees C and a failure to increase food intake as rapidly as control mice when exposed to 14 degrees C. Because lack of UCP-1-mediated thermogenesis in BAT of knockout mice is known not to induce hyperphagia, we propose that deficiency of UCP-1-expressing brown adipocytes in BAT of UCP-DTA mice results in lack of a satiety factor, secreted by these cells in BAT of control mice in inverse relationship to sympathetic nervous system activity.

Treatment with CL 316,243, a beta 3-adrenoceptor agonist, reduces serum leptin in rats with diet- or aging-associated obesity, but not in Zucker rats with genetic (fa/fa) obesity

OBJECTIVE

To assess the effect of chronic treatment with a beta 3-adrenoceptor agonist, CL 316,243 (CL) on serum leptin concentration in rats with diet-induced obesity (DIO) or with genetic obesity (fa/fa Zucker).

DESIGN

Leptin concentration was measured in serum of young control rats, young rats with DIO and old control or genetically obese fa/fa Zucker rats, that were treated chronically with CL for 2-4 weeks in our previous studies.

RESULTS

Treatment with CL reduced elevated leptin concentrations in young rats with DIO and in old mildly obese control rats to the low concentration of young lean rats. It did not alter the grossly elevated concentration in fa/fa rats. This effect of CL correlated well with its effect to reduce white adipocyte size, except in fa/fa rats. In CL-treated fa/fa rats, despite reductions in body fat mass and in white adipocyte size, and despite normalization of both hyperglycemia and hyperinsulinemia, the leptin concentration did not change.

DISCUSSION

The reason for lack of change in leptin concentrations in fa/fa rats, despite shrinking of white adipocytes and partial reversal of the obesity, may be due to another defect. The large increase in white adipocyte number in these animals was not reversed by the treatment and might have contributed to elevated leptin production. In addition, all forms of leptin receptor are known to be defective in fa/fa rats. Since leptin is rapidly excreted in urine and leptin receptors (including a form known to be involved in leptin transport) are expressed in the kidney, we suggest that leptin excretion is impaired in the fa/fa rat. This impairment contributes to maintenance of an elevated concentration of leptin in its blood and prevents treatment with a beta 3-adrenoceptor agonist from reducing this elevated concentration despite reversal of both obesity and diabetes. In addition, we suggest that CL-induced suppression of hyperphagia in fa/fa rats is leptin-independent and due to the large increase in thermogenesis.

Beta3-adrenergic receptors on white and brown adipocytes mediate beta3-selective agonist-induced effects on energy expenditure, insulin secretion, and food intake. A study using transgenic and gene knockout mice

beta3-Adrenergic receptors (beta3-ARs) are expressed predominantly on white and brown adipocytes, and acute treatment of mice with CL 316,243, a potent and highly selective beta3-AR agonist, produces a 2-fold increase in energy expenditure, a 50-100-fold increase in insulin levels, and a 40-50% reduction in food intake. Recently, we generated gene knockout mice lacking functional beta3-ARs and demonstrated that each of these responses were mediated exclusively by beta3-ARs. However, the tissue site responsible for producing these actions is unknown. In the present study, genetically engineered mice were created in which beta3-ARs are expressed exclusively in white and brown adipocytes (WAT+BAT-mice), or in brown adipocytes only (BAT-mice). This was accomplished by injecting tissue-specific beta3-AR transgenic constructs into mouse zygotes homozygous for the beta3-AR knockout allele. Control, knockout, WAT+BAT, and BAT-mice were then treated acutely with CL, and the effects on various parameters were assessed. As previously observed, all effects of CL were completely absent in gene knockout mice lacking beta3-ARs. The effects on O2 consumption, insulin secretion, and food intake were completely rescued with transgenic re-expression of beta3-ARs in white and brown adipocytes (WAT+BAT-mice), demonstrating that each of these responses is mediated exclusively by beta3-ARs in white and/or brown adipocytes, and that beta3-ARs in other tissue sites were not required. Importantly, transgenic re-expression of beta3-ARs in brown adipocytes only (BAT-mice) failed to rescue, in any way, CL-mediated effects on insulin levels and food intake and only minimally restored effects on oxygen consumption, indicating that any effect on insulin secretion and food intake, and a full stimulation of oxygen consumption required the presence of beta3-ARs in white adipocytes. The mechanisms by which beta3-AR agonist stimulation of white adipocytes produces these responses are unknown but may involve novel mediators not previously known to effect these processes.

Hypertrophy of brown adipocytes in brown and white adipose tissues and reversal of diet-induced obesity in rats treated with a beta3-adrenoceptor agonist

In a previous study, we demonstrated that chronic treatment with a new beta3-adrenoceptor agonist, CL 316,243 [disodium (R,R)-5-[2-[[2-(3-chlorophenyl)-2-hydroxyethyl]-amino]propyl]-1,3-ben zodioxazole-2,2-dicarboxylate], promoted thermogenesis, caused the appearance of multilocular adipocytes in white adipose tissue (WAT), and retarded development of obesity in young rats eating a high-fat diet (Himms-Hagen et al., Am J Physiol 266: R1371-R1382, 1994). Objectives of the present study were to find out whether CL 316,243 could reverse established diet-induced obesity in rats and to identify the multilocular adipocytes that appeared in WAT. Infusion of CL 316,243 (1 mg/kg/day) reduced abdominal fat, with a decrease in enlarged adipocyte size but no loss of white adipocytes. The resting metabolic rate increased by 40-45%, but food intake was not altered. Abundant densely stained multilocular brown adipocytes expressing uncoupling protein (UCP) appeared in retroperitoneal WAT, in which a marked increase in protein content occurred. UCP content of interscapular brown adipose tissue (BAT) was also increased markedly. We suggest that the substantial increase in the resting metabolic rate induced by CL 316,243 occurs in brown adipocytes in both BAT and WAT. The origin of the brown adipocytes that appeared in WAT is uncertain. They may have been small brown preadipocytes, expressing beta3-adrenoceptors but with few mitochondria and little or no UCP, that were induced to hypertrophy by the beta3-agonist.

Appearance of brown adipocytes in white adipose tissue during CL 316,243-induced reversal of obesity and diabetes in Zucker fa/fa rats

BACKGROUND

In our previous studies, chronic treatment of rats with a new beta 3-adrenoceptor agonist, CL 316,243, retarded diet-induced obesity and promoted thermogenesis in young animals and reversed established diet-induced obesity in older animals that continued to eat a high fat diet. Reversal of obesity was associated with shrinking of enlarged white adipocytes but the number of mature white adipocytes, which had not been increased by the diet, was not reduced. Drug-treatment induced appearance of abundant brown adipocytes in white adipose tissue (WAT) depots as well as hypertrophy of brown adipose tissue (BAT) in both lean and diet-induced obese rats.

OBJECTIVES

To find out whether the known hyperplasia of white adipocytes in the obese fa/fa rat could be reversed by CL 316,243-treatment and whether the grossly enlarged WAT depots of the obese fa/fa rat contain precursors to brown adipocytes.

RESULTS

CL 316,243 infusion (1 mg/kg/d) reduced abdominal fat. The loss of fat was due to a decrease in white adipocyte size, with no loss of the markedly elevated number of adipocytes in the fa/fa rats. Resting metabolic rate increased by 40% in lean rats, by 70% in fa/fa rats. Food intake decreased in the hyperphagic fa/fa rats but did not change in lean rats, in both lean and fa/fa rats, a marked increase in protein content of retroperitoneal WAT was associated with appearance of abundant densely-stained brown adipocytes expressing uncoupling protein (UCP) but total number of cells (from DNA content) actually decreased. Hyperinsulinemia and hyperglycemia of fa/fa rats were reduced by treatment, indicating improved sensitivity to insulin.

CONCLUSIONS

Abundant precursors to brown adipocytes are present in WAT depots of fa/fa rats and much of the exaggerated increase in resting metabolic rate induced by CL 316,243 occurs in these cells. This beta 3-adrenoceptor agonist is an effective anti-obesity and anti-diabetic agent in fa/fa rats. It does not bring about disappearance of mature white adipocytes but does bring about a remodelling of WAT, with a marked change in cell composition.

Raising at thermoneutrality prevents obesity and hyperphagia in BAT-ablated transgenic mice

Transgenic mice with ablation of brown adipocytes induced by brown adipocyte-specific expression of diphtheria toxin A chain (DTA) driven by the uncoupling protein (UCP) promoter (UCP-DTA mice) become obese and hyperphagic (Lowell, B. B., V. S. Susulic, A. Hamann, J. A. Lawitts, J. Himms-Hagen, B. B. Boyer, L. P. Kozak, and J. S. Flier. Nature 366: 740-742, 1993). A deficit in energy expenditure for brown adipose tissue (BAT) thermogenesis in these mice is presumed to contribute to the development of obesity. The objective of the present study was to obviate any deficit in BAT thermogenesis by raising transgenic and control mice at thermoneutrality (35 degrees C), where both would have equally inactive BAT, to see whether this would prevent the obesity and the hyperphagia. Transgenic and control mice were raised from weaning (3 wk of age) to 8 wk of age at either 24 or 35 degrees C. Raising at 35 degrees C completely prevented development of obesity of UCP-DTA mice, as indicated by their normal carcass fat, normal weights of four major white adipose tissue depots, and normal size of white adipocytes. As seen before, transgenic mice raised at 24 degrees C had excess weight gain by 6 wk of age and by 8 wk had doubled carcass fat, an obesity characterized by increased white adipocyte size with no increase in number of adipocytes. The treatment also prevented hyperphagia of UCP-DTA mice, consistent with the hypothesized role of BAT thermogenesis in control of thermoregulatory feeding (Himms-Hagen, J. Proc. Soc. Exp. Biol. Med. 208: 159-169, 1995). UCP-DTA mice thus differ from genetically obese mice (ob/ob, db/db) for which raising at thermoneutrality is known not to prevent either the obesity or the hyperphagia. Both the obesity and the hyperphagia of UCP-DTA mice appear to be due to their deficit in BAT thermogenesis.

Targeted disruption of the beta 3-adrenergic receptor gene

beta 3-Adrenergic receptors (beta 3-ARs) are expressed predominantly in white and brown adipose tissue, and beta 3-selective agonists are potential anti-obesity drugs. However, the role of beta 3-ARs in normal physiology is unknown. To address this issue, homologous recombination was used to generate mice that lack beta 3-ARs. This was accomplished by direct injection of a DNA-targeting construct into mouse zygotes. Twenty-three transgenic mice were generated, of which two had targeted disruption of the beta 3-AR gene. Mice that were homozygous for the disrupted allele had undetectable levels of intact beta 3-AR mRNA, as assessed by RNase protection assay and Northern blotting, and lacked functional beta 3-ARs, as demonstrated by complete loss of beta 3-agonist (CL 316,243)-induced stimulation of adenylate cyclase activity and lipolysis. beta 3-AR-deficient mice had modestly increased fat stores (females more than males), indicating that beta 3-ARs play a role in regulating energy balance. Importantly, beta 1 but not beta 2-AR mRNA levels up-regulated in white and brown adipose tissue of beta 3-AR-deficient mice (brown more than white), strongly implying that beta 3-ARs mediate physiologically relevant signaling under normal conditions and that "cross-talk" exists between beta 3-ARs and beta 1-AR gene expression. Finally, acute treatment of normal mice with CL 316,243 increased serum levels of free fatty acids (FFAs) (3.2-fold) and insulin (140-fold), increased energy expenditure (2-fold), and reduced food intake (by 45%). These effects were completely absent in beta 3-AR-deficient mice, proving that the actions of CL are mediated exclusively by beta 3-ARs. beta 3-AR-deficient mice should be useful as a means to a better understanding of the physiology and pharmacology of beta 3-ARs.

Resistance to aging-associated obesity in capsaicin-desensitized rats one year after treatment

Previous studies demonstrated reduced weight of abdominal white adipose tissue depots and of carcass fat in capsaicin-desensitized (Cap-Des) rats up to 8 months after treatment. The objective of the present study was to find out whether aging-associated obesity and hyperplasia of retroperitoneal white adipose tissue was prevented in older (13.5 months old) Cap-Des rats, one year after treatment with Cap (done when they were 1.5 months old). The prevalence of obesity is known to increase in rats by this age. Abdominal white adipose tissue depots weighed less in old Cap-Des rats, both epididymal (9% less) and retroperitoneal (30% less). The number of mature white adipocytes was 28% less in the retroperitoneal depot but was not significantly different in the epididymal depot. Adipocyte size was not different. Carcass fat was less, both total and as percent of body weight. Food intake was normal for their reduced body size. The exponential increase in retroperitoneal white adipose tissue weight characteristic of aging rats that are becoming obese was virtually absent in Cap-Des rats. We conclude that lack of function of capsaicin-sensitive afferent autonomic nerves, known to be destroyed in Cap-Des rats, results in an alteration in energy balance conducive to leanness. We suggest that the attenuated age-associated increase in circulating CGRP (derived mainly from capsaicin-sensitive nerves) in the Cap-Des rat results in a lower degree of aging-associated insulin-resistance, hence in a lesser degree of obesity.

Does thermoregulatory feeding occur in newborn infants? A novel view of the role of brown adipose tissue thermogenesis in control of food intake

The physiological significance of the extensive deposits of brown adipose tissue (BAT) in newborn human infants has been the subject of much experimentation and discussion. Because of its large thermogenic capacity, its function has usually been viewed as preparing the infant for producing heat in response to cold exposure at birth. Newborn infants are indeed capable of precise thermoregulation for a limited time over a rather limited range of ambient temperatures, from thermoneutrality (32-34 degrees C) down to common "room" temperatures (24-28 degrees C). During such mild "cold-exposure", in response to a decrease in their skin temperature, their sympathetic nervous system activity increases, and they can more than double their resting metabolic rate, principally by thermogenesis in their BAT. This review puts forward an entirely new role for BAT thermogenesis in the cyclic feeding pattern of newborn infants during their first months of life. BAT thermogenesis is proposed to be an integral element in a physiological thermoregulatory feeding control mechanism in which extended periods of very gradual cooling are interspersed with episodes of increased sympathetic nervous system activity, increased heating via BAT thermogenesis, arousal, and feeding. The cry with which the baby attracts its mother's attention is an integral part of the mechanism, as is the nutritive suckling reflex and the behavior of the mother. Initiation of feeding is attributed to a transient dip in blood glucose concentration that is due to stimulation of glucose utilization in the BAT. Termination of feeding is attributed to the high temperature brought about by the stimulated BAT thermogenesis.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Role of brown adipose tissue thermogenesis in control of thermoregulatory feeding in rats: a new hypothesis that links thermostatic and glucostatic hypotheses for control of food intake

The hypothesis proposed in this review provides a novel view of both the control of feeding and the function of brown adipose tissue (BAT) thermogenesis. It takes into account the episodic nature of feeding in rats allowed free access to food and the necessity for episodic events in the controlling systems which govern initiation and termination of feeding. A feeding episode is proposed to occur during an episode of increased sympathetic nervous system activity that stimulates BAT thermogenesis and increases body temperature. Two different aspects of stimulated BAT metabolism, namely increased uptake of glucose and increased heat production, evoke initiation and termination of feeding, respectively. Initiation is mediated by a transient dip in blood glucose concentration caused by stimulated glucose utilization in BAT. Feeding continues while both BAT and core temperature continue to rise. Termination is induced by the high level of core temperature brought about by the episode of stimulated BAT thermogenesis. The time between initiation and termination determines the size of the meal and depends on the balance between BAT thermogenesis and heat loss, and thus on ambient temperature. The underlying cause of the episodic stimulation of sympathetic nervous system activity is a decline in core temperature to a level recognized by the hypothalamus as needing a burst of increased heat production. Thus, BAT thermogenesis is important in control of meal size, relating it to thermoregulatory needs. When this function is lost, as in many obese animal models of obesity, the animal loses its ability to remain in energy balance by precisely adjusting its intake in relation to environmental temperature and meal size increases. The hypothesis also predicts that an increase in endogenous heat production that is not due to BAT thermogenesis will prevent the matching of intake to increased expenditure via thermoregulatory feeding. This is seen, for example, in the shivering rat during the early stage of acclimation to cold. Feeding is viewed as the outcome of a thermoregulatory event. Rats do not eat to warm up; they start to eat after they have started to warm up and stop eating once they have warmed up. The phenomenon is termed thermoregulatory feeding, to distinguish it from feeding initiated by other stimuli.

Apparent lack of beta 3-adrenoceptors and of insulin regulation of glucose transport in brown adipose tissue of guinea pigs

Norepinephrine-induced thermogenesis was substantial in adipocytes from brown adipose tissue (BAT) of cold-acclimated guinea pigs but absent in adipocytes from BAT of warm-acclimated guinea pigs. There was no thermogenic response to any beta 3-adrenergic agonist (CL-316,243, ZD-7114, BRL-28410, CGP-12177). The receptor was characterized as a beta 1-adrenoceptor. Adrenergic agonists stimulated adenylate cyclase in membranes from BAT of both warm- and cold-acclimated guinea pigs also via a beta 1-adrenoceptor; beta 3-adrenergic agonists had no effect. Glucose transport by brown adipocytes from warm-acclimated guinea pigs was not stimulated by either norepinephrine or insulin. Cold acclimation induced the appearance of stimulation of glucose transport by norepinephrine in association with the appearance of a large capacity for thermogenesis, but there was little improvement in response to insulin. GLUT4 was present in membranes from BAT of both warm- and cold-acclimated guinea pigs. Insulin is known to have an antilipolytic effect on both BAT and white adipose tissue of guinea pigs. Thus there is a selective lack of insulin-regulated glucose transport that is not improved by cold acclimation. Guinea pigs may have a mutated component of the translocation mechanism for GLUT4. beta 3-Adrenoceptors appear to be absent in brown adipocytes of adult guinea pigs, as in white adipocytes of guinea pigs, yet are known to be present in the gut. Tissue-specific expression of beta 3-adrenergic receptors in guinea pigs may differ from that in rats, in which receptors are expressed in the adipose tissues and gut.

Effect of CL-316,243, a thermogenic beta 3-agonist, on energy balance and brown and white adipose tissues in rats

The objective was to assess the effect of a new, highly selective beta 3-adrenergic agonist, CL-316,243 (CL) (J. D. Bloom, M. D. Dutia, B. D. Johnson, A. Wissner, M. G. Burns, E. E. Largis, J. A. Dolan, and T. H. Claus., J. Med. Chem. 35: 3081, 1992), on energy balance and brown and white adipose tissues (BAT and WAT, respectively) in young rats eating a high-fat diet to induce obesity. Chronic treatment with CL increased body temperature and 24-h energy expenditure, mainly by increasing resting metabolic rate. Food intake was not altered but carcass fat was reduced. Interscapular BAT was markedly hypertrophied, with three- to fourfold increases in the content of uncoupling protein (UCP) and cytochrome oxidase. Quantitative immunoelectron microscopy of interscapular BAT of CL-treated rats showed smaller mitochondria with an unchanged total amount of UCP per mitochondrion. The relative frequency of the four major cell types in BAT (mature brown adipocytes, preadipocytes, interstitial cells, endothelial cells) was not altered. The CL-induced hypertrophy differed from that induced by chronic stimulation by endogenous norepinephrine (as in cold-adaptation) in absence of hyperplasia (there was a slightly reduced DNA content), absence of an increase in the thyroxine (T4) 5'-deiodinase activity, and absence of a selective increase in UCP concentration. WAT depots weighed less and had fewer cells (lower DNA content) in the CL-treated rats. Some multilocular adipocytes appeared in these normally almost exclusively unilocular WAT depots (mesenteric, inguinal, epididymal, retroperitoneal). We conclude that CL not only promotes BAT mitochondrial proliferation and thermogenesis and overall energy expenditure and leanness, but also retards the development of WAT hyperplasia during the early stage of diet-induced obesity.

Development of obesity in transgenic mice after genetic ablation of brown adipose tissue

Brown adipose tissue, because of its capacity for uncoupled mitochondrial respiration, has been implicated as an important site of facultative energy expenditure. This has led to speculation that this tissue normally functions to prevent obesity. Attempts to ablate or denervate brown adipose tissue surgically have been uninformative because it exists in diffuse depots and has substantial capacity for regeneration and hypertrophy. Here we have used a transgenic toxigene approach to create two lines of transgenic mice with primary deficiency of brown adipose tissue. At 16 days, both lines have decreased brown fat and obesity. In one line, brown fat subsequently regenerates and obesity resolves. In the other line, the deficiency persists and obesity, with its morbid complications, advances. Obesity develops in the absence of hyperphagia, indicating that brown fat deficient mice have increased metabolic efficiency. As obesity progresses, transgenic animals develop hyperphagia. This study supports a critical role for brown adipose tissue in the nutritional homeostasis of mice.

ATPase-inhibitor proteins of brown-adipose-tissue mitochondria from warm- and cold-acclimated rats

1. A group of male Sprague-Dawley rats (5-6 weeks old) was cold-acclimated at 4 degrees C for 4 weeks. Warm-acclimated controls remained at 24 degrees C. Total protein content of brown adipose tissue (BAT) increased more than 3-fold and total uncoupling protein (UCP) content increased more than 6-fold upon cold-acclimation. The concentration of UCP in isolated BAT mitochondria almost doubled. 2. Specific ATPase activity of the non-thermogenic BAT mitochondria (from warm-acclimated controls) was low and increased about 6-fold on addition of 1 microM-Ca2+, which raised free Ca2+ levels (measured by Fura-2) in the incubation media from 1.32 +/- 0.28 microM (mean +/- S.E.M.) to 2.29 +/- 0.39 microM [at which the Ca(2+)-binding ATPase-inhibitor protein (CaBI) is inactivated]. Correspondingly, the specific ATP synthetase activity of the non-thermogenic BAT mitochondria was high and was decreased by 74% by addition of 1 microM-Ca2+. 3. In contrast, specific ATPase activity of thermogenic BAT mitochondria (from cold-acclimated rats) was 5 times that of the control group, and addition of Ca2+ had only a small stimulatory response. Correspondingly, the specific ATP synthetase activity of the thermogenic BAT mitochondria was low, and the decrease by Ca2+ was small, albeit significant. 4. Extracts of BAT mitochondria from both groups of animals contained significant amounts of the ATPase-inhibitor protein of Pullman and Monroy (PMI) as well as of CaBI, as shown by gel electrophoresis. Kinetic studies of inhibition of mitochondrial ATPase activity showed that PMI activity was unaltered in extracts from the thermogenic BAT mitochondria, whereas CaBI activity was slightly but significantly increased. 5. The presence of active ATPase-inhibitor proteins in BAT mitochondria was shown for the first time. We conclude that uncoupling of oxidative phosphorylation occurs in thermogenic BAT mitochondria, even in the presence of the ATPase-inhibitor proteins.

Effects of cold acclimation and fasting on thyroxine 5'-deiodinase in brown adipose tissue of ob/ob mice

Gradual acclimation to mild cold for 6 weeks increases the total activity of thyroxine 5'-deiodinase in brown adipose tissue (BAT) of genetically obese (ob/ob) mice to a level greater than that in similarly acclimated lean mice. This increase is largely due to the growth of the BAT in the ob/ob mouse, because specific activity of the enzyme is only slightly increased. In similarly cold-acclimated lean mice, the specific activity of thyroxine 5'-deiodinase was not altered. BAT mitochondrial GDP binding increased to the same high level in the gradually cold-acclimated ob/ob mouse as in cold-acclimated lean mice. We conclude that the growth and maintenance of BAT in the cold-acclimated ob/ob mouse, as in the cold-acclimated lean mouse, does not require greatly increased activity of thyroxine 5'-deiodinase. Fasting for 48 hr did not alter thyroxine 5'-deiodinase activity of BAT in either lean or ob/ob mice. The fasting-induced increase in activity seen by others in lean mice is probably due to thermoregulatory stimulation of BAT occasioned by the low environmental temperature at which the fasting occurred.

Number of mice per cage influences uncoupling protein content of brown adipose tissue

The effect of housing density of mice on the thermogenic state and capacity of their brown adipose tissue was studied. Mice were housed one, two, or six per cage at 28 degrees C for 15 days. Increased housing density suppressed the thermogenic capacity of brown adipose tissue (decreased the total amount of uncoupling protein) and decreased the thermogenic state of brown adipose tissue mitochondria (decreased GDP binding). A density of six mice per cage had a greater effect than a density of two mice per cage. The size of brown adipose tissue (wet weight and protein content), the content of mitochondria in it (cytochrome oxidase content), and the total activity of thyroxine 5'-deiodinase were not altered by housing density. We conclude that even at a temperature close to thermoneutrality (29-33 degrees C for the mouse), the occurrence of social thermoregulation (huddling) reduces the requirement for brown adipose tissue thermogenesis and results in a reduction in its thermogenic capacity. It is clearly of importance that the design of studies of mouse brown adipose tissue take into account not only the temperature at which the mice are housed, but also the number of mice housed per cage.

Rapid but transient atrophy of brown adipose tissue in capsaicin-desensitized rats

Our previous studies showed atrophy of brown adipose tissue (BAT) in capsaicin-desensitized rats during the period 11-28 days after injections [Cui et al., Am. J. Physiol. 259 (Regulatory Integrative Comp. Physiol. 28): R324-R332, 1990]. The objective of the present studies was to assess the rapidity with which the atrophy occurred and the extent to which recovery had occurred by 8 wk. Rats, either vehicle-injected controls or capsaicin injected, were studied 1, 3, 14, 28, and 52 days after the last injection. BAT was markedly atrophied at 1 day, having less total protein, fewer mitochondria (less total cytochrome oxidase and total uncoupling protein), and fewer cells (less DNA). Atrophy persisted for up to 14 days but had largely disappeared by 28-52 days. A transient reduction in body weight gain and white epididymal adipose tissue weight had also reversed by 28-52 days. We suggest that the rapid atrophy of BAT after capsaicin desensitization is secondary to the loss of sensory neuropeptides in its sensory nerves, neuropeptides that either exert a trophic effect on synthesis of mitochondria or an inhibitory influence on processes that promote degradation of mitochondria. The retardation of the normal age-associated increase in DNA content of BAT in the capsaicin-desensitized rat suggests that sensory neuropeptides might also modulate cell proliferation.

Long-term decrease in body fat and in brown adipose tissue in capsaicin-desensitized rats

Previous studies showed that atrophy of brown adipose tissue (BAT) of capsaicin-desensitized rats occurs rapidly and persists for up to 28 days. The rats do not, however, become any more obese than control rats, despite the frequent association of atrophied BAT with obesity. The objective of the present study was to assess longer-term effects of capsaicin desensitization on BAT and on energy balance. Rats were studied at 2.5, 3.5, and 8 mo after treatment. Major effects at 8 mo, mostly seen to a lesser extent at 3.5 mo but not at 2.5 mo, were a marked reduction in body weight that was largely attributable to a reduction in body fat but also to some stunting of growth and an atrophy or lack of growth of BAT (reduced weight and content of protein, DNA, cytochrome oxidase, and uncoupling protein). Resting metabolic rates and food intake at 8 mo were reduced in proportion to the smaller body size. We suggest that the lack of trophic influence of sensory neuropeptides on BAT proposed previously may extend to other organs, including white adipose tissue, and contribute to the reduced adiposity and the smaller body size of capsaicin-desensitized rats.

Brown adipose tissue thermogenesis: interdisciplinary studies

Energy expenditure for thermogenesis in brown adipose tissue (BAT) serves either to maintain body temperature in the cold or to waste food energy. It has roles in thermal balance and energy balance, and when defective, is usually associated with obesity. BAT can grow or atrophy; it is usually atrophied in obese animals. Control of BAT thermogenesis and growth is by the sympathetic nervous system, with integration of signals in the hypothalamus. Sensory nerves may also be involved. Understanding the control of growth and differentiation of BAT is important for discovering how to reactivate it is obesity. Studies on control of gene expression in BAT are concentrating on thermogenically important components such as the uncoupling protein (which allows BAT mitochondria to operate in a thermogenic uncoupled mode), lipoprotein lipase (which allows BAT to compete with white adipose tissue for dietary lipid), and thyroxine 5'-deiodinase (which allows endogenous triiodothyronine generation, part of the control of differentiation and growth of BAT). Differentiation of BAT cell precursors in culture has recently been achieved. BAT is present in adult humans and some anti-obesity drugs are targeted to stimulation of BAT thermogenesis. However, extrapolation to humans of results of studies of BAT requires the development of novel approaches to the noninvasive assessment of amount and function of human BAT.

Capsaicin desensitization induces atrophy of brown adipose tissue in rats

Interscapular brown adipose tissue (BAT) of capsaicin-desensitized (Cap-Des) rats is atrophied, having a lower wet weight, a reduced total protein content, and as little as 10% of the normal content of uncoupling protein (UCP). Because the mitochondrial concentration of UCP, relative to other mitochondrial proteins, is not altered in Cap-Des rats, it is concluded that most of the mitochondria of BAT of Cap-Des rats have been lost. Consistent with this interpretation is a reduction of almost 40% of the overall thermogenic response to infused norepinephrine by anesthetized Cap-Des rats. Feeding a palatable diet had a delayed thermogenic effect and no trophic effect on BAT of Cap-Des rats. Food selection and intake were normal in Cap-Des rats, and diet-induced weight gain was the same as in control rats. Exposure of Cap-Des rats to cold for 1 or 7 days exerted a normal thermogenic effect on BAT but a delayed trophic effect. The cold-induced increase in thyroxine 5'-deiodinase in BAT occurred normally. Cap-Des rats were hypothermic at 1 day but normothermic by 7 days of cold exposure. The concentration of thyroid hormones in their blood was normal. It is suggested that the depletion of sensory neuropeptides in BAT presumed to be brought about by Cap-Des results either in loss of a trophic influence on mitochondriogenesis in BAT or in lack of an inhibitory influence on mitochondrial breakdown in BAT and leads to atrophy of BAT in rats living at 26 degrees C and an impaired response to stimulation by diet.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Adrenergic effects on thyroxine 5'-deiodinase in brown adipose tissue of lean and ob/ob mice

Genetically obese, ob/ob, mice have an impaired capacity to increase the level of thyroxine 5'-deiodinase (T5'D) in their brown adipose tissue (BAT) when they are exposed to cold. Yet they are able to secrete norepinephrine (NE) from the nerves of their BAT in response to cold and are apparently refractory to this action of NE. The principal objective was to find out whether injected NE could increase T5'D in BAT of the ob/ob mouse. A secondary objective was to elucidate the nature of the adrenergic receptor(s) involved in this response in lean and ob/ob mice. Injection of NE increased T5'D in BAT of lean mice within 3 h. It also increased T5'D in BAT of ob/ob mice but to a lesser extent. Basal T5'D activity in BAT of ob/ob mice was greater than that seen in BAT of lean mice because of the greater size of the tissue. Neither isopropylnorepinephrine nor phenylephrine alone could increase T5'D activity, but a combination increased it almost as well as did NE, although to a lesser extent in ob/ob mice than in lean mice. Both a beta-adrenergic antagonist (propranolol) and an alpha 1-adrenergic antagonist (prazosin) could inhibit the effect of NE. The acute effect of NE on metabolic rate of intact mice also involves an action of both beta- and alpha 1-adrenergic receptors. The beta-adrenergic component appears to be defective in the ob/ob mouse.

Thyroxine 5'-deiodinase in brown adipose tissue of the cynomolgus monkey Macaca fascicularis

Brown adipose tissue was identified in axillary, interscapular, subscapular, and cervical fat deposits of male and female cynomolgus monkeys (Macaca fascicularis) by histological and immunological techniques. Histology included staining of mitochondria with a Novelli stain and identification of mitochondria-rich multilocular cells. Immunological detection involved separation of homogenate proteins by sodium dodecyl sulphate--polyacrylamide gel chromatography, blotting on to nitrocellulose membranes, and identification of the specific uncoupling protein, unique to brown adipose tissue, with an antiserum to purified hamster uncoupling protein followed by detection with 125I-labelled protein A. The activity of thyroxine 5'-deiodinase in monkey brown adipose tissue homogenates was much higher than that seen previously in brown adipose tissue of rats, mice, and hamsters. This is the first demonstration of the presence of this enzyme in brown adipose tissue of a primate species.

Defective regulation of thyroxine 5'-deiodinase in brown adipose tissue of ob/ob mice

Genetically obese (ob/ob) and lean (+/?) mice were exposed to a cold (14 degrees C) environment for 1, 3, 6, 12, 16, or 24 h or remained in a warm (28 degrees C) environment. In ob/ob mice the increase in brown adipose tissue (BAT) thermogenesis (mitochondrial GDP binding) was low and the increase in thyroxine 5'-deiodinase (T5'D) was delayed; there was a reduced increase in serum 3,5,3'-triiodothyronine (T3) level and these mice became hypothermic. Content of uncoupling protein (UCP) was low in BAT of obese mice and no cold-induced increase occurred. Adrenalectomy of obese mice before exposure to cold (14 degrees C) improved defective thermogenic response of BAT and thermoregulation, restored to normal the increases in T5'D activity and serum T3 level, and promoted an exaggerated increase in UCP content, detectable after only 6 h. Adrenalectomy of cold-exposed lean mice did not alter thermoregulation, the increase in BAT T5'D activity, or the increase in serum T3 but enhanced the thermogenic response and allowed a higher UCP content in BAT of cold-exposed mice. We conclude that suppression of the cold-induced increase in T5'D activity in BAT can be added to the other known corticosterone-dependent anomalies of the ob/ob mouse. We speculate that lack of the cold-induced increase in T5'D in BAT of the ob/ob mouse prevents the normal participation of T3 in the trophic response of BAT to cold and underlies the abnormality in this response.

Adrenalectomy prevents obesity in glutamate-treated mice

Mice treated with monosodium glutamate (MSG) in the neonatal period grow into obese, stunted adults without overeating. We have previously demonstrated normal control of brown adipose tissue (BAT) thermogenic function in the MSG-treated mouse and have concluded that thermoregulation at a lower than normal body temperature for most of the time is a major cause of its obesity. The objective of the present experiments was to find out whether adrenalectomy would prevent obesity in the MSG-treated mouse, as it does in hyperphagic obese rodents, and whether the thermoregulatory anomaly would be prevented by this procedure. MSG-treated mice that were adrenalectomized at 5 wk of age and studied at 10 wk of age did not become obese. Adrenalectomy increased body temperature of MSG-treated mice to normal (male mice) or almost normal (female mice). Adrenalectomy increased BAT mitochondrial guanosine 5'-diphosphate binding in MSG-treated mice, indicative of an increased thermogenic state, but had the same effect in control mice. We conclude that obesity in the MSG-treated mouse is secondary to the high level of corticosterone in its blood, which raises its metabolic efficiency, an effect of corticosterone also seen in normal lean mice, and causes it to thermoregulate at a low energy-conserving level. This latter effect is peculiar to the MSG-treated mouse and is not seen in corticosterone-treated normal mice.

Enhanced acute response to corticosterone in genetically obese (ob/ob) mice

Our previous work showed that ob/ob mice responded to physiological concentrations of blood corticosterone (maintained by implanted pellets of corticosterone in adrenalectomized mice) by increasing food intake and blood insulin concentration to a much greater extent than did lean mice. The present study sought to determine whether the chronic presence of corticosterone was necessary or whether a single injection would also have these effects. Lean and ob/ob mice were adrenalectomized at 4.5 wk of age, injected with corticosterone at 10.5 wk of age, and killed 6 or 15 h after injection. A markedly exaggerated hyperinsulinemia was seen in ob/ob mice at 15 h. Food intake increased in both lean and obese mice, and brown adipose tissue thermogenesis (as reflected by mitochondrial guanosine 5'-diphosphate binding) was suppressed in both. We conclude that the ob/ob mouse has an excessive central sensitivity and responsiveness to a rapid action of corticosterone that results in neural activation of insulin secretion and suppression of brown adipose tissue thermogenesis. The persistence of some degree of obesity in the adrenalectomized ob/ob mouse is attributed to the remaining slight hyperinsulinemia coupled with reduced energy expenditure due to persistent thermoregulation at a lower than normal body temperature.

Role of T3 in thermogenic and trophic responses of brown adipose tissue to cold

Cold-induced growth of brown adipose tissue (BAT) was studied in thyroidectomized rats that received low doses of either thyroxine (T4) or 3,5,3'-triidothyronine (T3). The objective was to find out whether the cold-induced increase in activity of T4 5'-deiodinase, and thus increased endogenous T3 generation in BAT itself, was necessary for growth of BAT or whether T3 from the blood could serve as effectively as T3 produced endogenously. The acute thermogenic response of BAT to cold (15 h at 4 degrees C), as measured by the increase in mitochondrial GDP binding, was abolished by thyroidectomy, as seen previously, and restored by T3 as well as by T4 treatment. The long-term trophic response to cold (20-25 days at 4 degrees C), as indicated by increases in protein and DNA and in mitochondrial concentrations of GDP-binding sites and uncoupling protein, occurred whether T3 or T4 was administered to these thyroidectomized rats. We conclude that endogenous T3 production in BAT does not direct and is not essential for the long-term trophic response of this tissue to cold. We are not able to exclude, on the basis of the present results, that an optimal growth rate during the initial phase of the trophic response may require enhanced endogenous production of T3 in BAT. The cold-induced increase in T4 5'-deiodinase activity, presumably mediated by an action of norepinephrine, does not require the presence of either T3 or T4, as seen previously by others.

Brown adipose tissue of mice with GTG-induced obesity: altered circadian control

The effect of feeding a "cafeteria" diet and of feeding a restricted amount of chow on brown adipose tissue (BAT) of lean and gold thioglucose (GTG)-obese mice was studied at various times of the day and night. Objectives were to find out 1) whether our previous finding of diet-induced growth of BAT of the GTG-obese mouse without thermogenic activation could be explained by a transient stimulation at a time of day not studied and 2) whether lack of stimulation of BAT thyroxine 5'-deiodinase (TD) by diet seen previously in lean mice and rats could be explained by a transient increase at times of day not studied. A transient activation of BAT thermogenesis, indicated by an increase in mitochondrial GDP binding, occurs immediately after cafeteria food is presented to the GTG-obese mouse, but the effect of diet is absent at other times. This transient stimulation of BAT in the GTG-obese mouse may be sufficient to produce the tissue growth observed. A circadian rhythm in GDP binding occurred in both lean and obese mice, whether they were eating chow or the cafeteria diet. Restricted feeding suppressed BAT mitochondrial GDP binding in lean mice but did not suppress any further the low level in GTG-obese mice. A circadian rhythm in TD activity in BAT also occurred in lean and obese mice, but no effect of cafeteria diet or of restricted feeding on this enzyme was detected at any time of day, except for a brief increase in obese mice at 0500.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Role of thermogenesis in the regulation of energy balance in relation to obesity

Obligatory thermogenesis is a necessary accompaniment of all metabolic processes involved in maintenance of the body in the living state, and occurs in all organs. It includes energy expenditure involved in ingesting, digesting, and processing food (thermic effect of food (TEF]. At certain life stages extra energy expenditure for growth, pregnancy, or lactation would also be obligatory. Facultative thermogenesis is superimposed on obligatory thermogenesis and can be rapidly switched on and rapidly suppressed by the nervous system. Facultative thermogenesis is important in both thermal balance, in which control of thermoregulatory thermogenesis (shivering in muscle, nonshivering in brown adipose tissue (BAT] balances neural control of heat loss mechanisms, and in energy balance, in which control of facultative thermogenesis (exercise-induced in muscle, diet-induced thermogenesis (DIT) in BAT) balances control of energy intake. Thermal balance (i.e., body temperature) is much more stringently controlled than energy balance (i.e., body energy stores). Reduced energy expenditure for thermogenesis is important in two types of obesity in laboratory animals. In the first type, deficient DIT in BAT is a prominent feature of altered energy balance. It may or may not be associated with hyperphagia. In a second type, reduced cold-induced thermogenesis in BAT as well as in other organs is a prominent feature of altered thermal balance. This in turn results in altered energy balance and obesity, exacerbated in some examples by hyperphagia. In some of the hyperphagic obese animals it is likely that the exaggerated obligatory thermic effect of food so alters thermal balance that BAT thermogenesis is suppressed. In all obese animals, deficient hypothalamic control of facultative thermogenesis and (or) food intake is implicated.

Attenuated response to cold of brown adipose tissue of mice made obese with gold thioglucose

In a first study, mice made obese with gold thioglucose became hypothermic when exposed to 4 degrees C. In a second study, lean mice and mice made obese with gold thioglucose (dynamic phase) were acclimated to 14 degrees C for up to 2 weeks and their brown adipose tissue was studied. The cold-induced increase in thyroxine 5'-deiodinase activity was initially slightly smaller in obese mice, but by 24 h and 2 weeks in the cold the activity of thyroxine 5'-deiodinase was the same in lean and obese mice. Unexpectedly, the elevated activity of 5'-deiodinase returned to the low level seen in warm-acclimated mice in both lean and obese mice after 2 weeks of cold acclimation. In gold thioglucose obese mice, a progressive cold-induced increase in the binding of guanosine diphosphate to isolated mitochondria, an index of both acute thermogenic activation and a long-term increase in uncoupling protein concentration, paralleled that seen in normal lean mice and remained at a high level after 2 weeks in the cold, although still remaining slightly lower than normal. It is not clear how a high level of mitochondrial GDP binding is maintained in cold-acclimated mice at the same time as a low level of thyroxine 5'-deiodinase activity when both are believed to be controlled by the sympathetic nervous system. We conclude that the gold thioglucose obese mouse can activate its brown adipose tissue fairly normally when it is exposed to cold, but that some attenuation of this process may contribute to the impaired survival of this mouse at low temperatures.

Neural influences on trophic changes in brown adipose tissue during cold acclimation

We studied the role of the sympathetic innervation in development and maintenance of increased levels of uncoupling protein (UCP) and of thyroxine 5'-deiodinase (TD) during cold-induced growth of brown adipose tissue (BAT). Interscapular BAT was unilaterally (and in some experiments, bilaterally) denervated either before acclimation to cold (4 degrees C) for 12 days or after 14 days of a total 28-day period of acclimation to cold. BAT norepinephrine was reduced to 3-7% of the normal level in denervated BAT for up to 26 days. Denervation slowed, but did not prevent, cold-induced increases in total protein, in mitochondrial GDP binding, and in mitochondrial UCP concentration, which all reached 50% or more of the elevated level in intact tissue. In contrast, TD activity did not exceed 10% of the elevated level in intact tissue at any time. Denervation after cold acclimation resulted in a very rapid loss of TD activity, a slower and selective loss (after a lag of 1 day) of UCP, and a much slower loss of tissue protein. We conclude that the sympathetic innervation is required for an optimal trophic response of BAT to cold acclimation and for maintenance in the hypertrophied state but that other factors are also involved. Induction and maintenance of TD in BAT does need the sympathetic innervation.

Lateral and medial hypothalamic lesions do not acutely affect brown adipose tissue thermogenesis

The acute effect of lateral (LH) and medial (MH) hypothalamic lesions on mitochondrial GDP binding in brown adipose tissue (BAT) (an index of thermogenic state) was studied one and two days postlesion. Groups of rats were lesioned, sham-lesioned, or unoperated and were all fasting. An additional group of unoperated rats had access to food throughout the study. The objective was to determine whether the hypermetabolic state and rapid weight loss known to be induced by LH lesions were attributable to the activation of BAT thermogenesis, and, if so, whether these effects were specific for LH lesions. No effect of either lesion on BAT thermogenic state could be detected at either time studied. Despite that fact, LH-lesioned rats, but not MH-lesioned rats, were hyperthermic at both times. We conclude that the prolonged hyperthermia which occurs shortly after LH lesions is not due to an activation of BAT thermogenesis. Instead, it can be likened to the febrile state in which an initial and brief activation of both nonshivering thermogenesis in BAT and shivering thermogenesis in muscles occurs only during the rising phase of the fever and is suppressed as soon as a stable hyperthermic state is reached. It thus appears unlikely that substantial and prolonged activation of BAT thermogenesis is a major mechanism that promotes exaggerated short-term weight loss in the LH-lesioned rat.

Control of norepinephrine turnover in brown adipose tissue of Syrian hamsters

Sympathetic nervous system activity in brown adipose tissue (BAT) of normal and myopathic Syrian hamsters was assessed by measuring norepinephrine turnover rate (NETR) using [3H]norepinephrine. Acute exposure of normal hamsters to cold (4 degrees C) for 4 or 24 h increased norepinephrine secretion but not resynthesis. By 3 days and at 2 wk in the cold, NETR increased but returned to a normal level by 6 wk. Hamsters were initially hypothermic (to 3 days) then normothermic (2 and 6 wk). Adaptation of normal or myopathic hamsters to high-fat diet or short photoperiod (4 h light, 20 h dark) for up to 12 wk did not alter NETR in BAT. Serum triiodothyronine (T3) concentration increased rapidly in the cold to reach a maximum level by 24 h at which it remained for 6 wk and was not correlated with changes in NETR in BAT. The high-fat diet did not alter T3 level in normal hamsters; it increased the low T3 level in myopathic hamsters. Short photoperiod induced a transient increase in T3 level in normal hamsters but not in myopathic hamsters. We conclude that the hypertrophied state of BAT in Syrian hamsters adapted to cold, to high-fat diet, or to short photoperiod is not maintained by elevated norepinephrine secretion and that some other factor(s) must be involved. A selective increase in concentration of BAT mitochondrial uncoupling protein in hamsters may be dependent on raised T3 level in serum and/or production in BAT, since both occur in response to cold acclimation but not in response to high-fat diet or short photoperiod.

Role of hyperthyroidism in increased thermogenesis in the cold-acclimated Syrian hamster

The oxygen consumption of cold-acclimated Syrian hamsters (measured in pentobarbital-anaesthetized animals) was 59% greater than that of warm-acclimated hamsters. Upon return of the cold-acclimated hamsters to 24 degrees C, the elevated metabolic rate declined slowly, with half-life of approximately 1 day. The increase correlated well with our previous finding of a four-fold increase in serum 3,5,3'-triiodothyronine concentration in cold-acclimated hamsters and the slow decline in concentration of this hormone during deacclimation. Daily administration of T3 (for 7 days) to warm-acclimated hamsters at 24 degrees C resulted in a similar increase in oxygen consumption that persisted 1 day after the last injection and had disappeared by 7 days after the last injection. We conclude that the high concentration of serum triiodothyronine in the cold-acclimated hamster exerts a thermogenic effect that probably contributes to thermoregulatory thermogenesis in the cold.

Attenuated cold-induced increase in mRNA for uncoupling protein in brown adipose tissue of obese (ob/ob) mice

The level of mRNA for uncoupling protein was measured in brown adipose tissue of young (8-10 weeks) and old (11 months) lean and ob/ob mice using a cDNA clone constructed previously. The level of poly(A)+ RNA was also measured using an oligo(dT)18 probe. Mice were kept at 28 degrees C or exposed to 14 degrees C for 12 h. The level of mRNA for uncoupling protein was normal in brown adipose tissue of younger obese mice but reduced in brown adipose tissue of old obese mice. The cold-induced absolute increase in uncoupling protein mRNA was smaller in obese mice, regardless of age. It is concluded that the known attenuation of the acute thermogenic response of brown adipose tissue of the ob/ob mouse to cold is accompanied by a similar attenuation of the initiation of the trophic response. It is likely, however, that these defects are secondary to the chronic reduction in sympathetic nervous system activity in brown adipose tissue of the ob/ob mouse, which results in a functional atrophy of the tissue.

Increased sensitivity of the genetically obese mouse to corticosterone

Adrenalectomy normalizes many abnormalities of the obese (ob/ob) mouse. The high corticosterone concentration in blood may account in part for development of obesity and other abnormalities in the ob/ob mouse. Our objective was to determine dose-response relationships for the effect of corticosterone on the obesity. Lean and ob/ob mice were adrenalectomized or sham-operated at 4.5 wk of age. Adrenalectomized mice received 100 mg implants of cholesterol containing corticosterone (0, 2, 5, 20, or 50 mg) at 8.5 wk of age and were killed at 10.5 wk of age. In ob/ob mice, but not in lean mice, low physiological levels of serum corticosterone (up to 10 micrograms/dl) markedly increased body weight gain, food intake, and serum insulin. They also increased white and brown adipose tissue weights and decreased brown adipose tissue mitochondrial GDP binding. Higher levels of corticosterone (12-22 micrograms/dl) increased body weight gain, white and brown adipose tissue weights, and serum insulin and suppressed brown adipose tissue mitochondrial GDP binding in lean mice also, although in most cases to a lesser extent than in ob/ob mice, but were still without effect on food intake. Only very high levels of corticosterone (approximately 30 micrograms/dl) increased food intake in lean mice. Hyperglycemia was induced in ob/ob, but not lean, mice only at concentrations of corticosterone greater than 17 micrograms/dl. Thermoregulation was unaffected by serum corticosterone at levels from 0 to 30 micrograms/dl in both ob/ob and lean mice. Thus the ob/ob mouse is excessively sensitive and responsive to an effect of physiological levels of corticosterone that results in hyperphagia, hyperinsulinemia, and increased weight gain.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)