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Brown adipose tissue and its therapeutic application

  • Review
  • Life & Medical Sciences
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Science Bulletin

Abstract

In addition to white adipose tissue (WAT) that stores energy, human and small mammals also have brown adipose tissue (BAT) that dissipates chemical energy for thermogenesis. BAT contains multilocular lipid droplets and much higher numbers of mitochondria than WAT. The mitochondria in BAT uncouple large amounts of fuel oxidation from ATP for heat generation. Accumulating evidences have demonstrated that increased activity and/or amount of BAT can reverse obesity and improve insulin resistance, which highlights that BAT plays an important role in energy metabolism. In this review, we summarized recent findings that shows advantageous effects of BAT activation in metabolic diseases. In addition, we presented the function and role of brown and beige fat cells and regulatory factors for them. Finally, we discussed the potential application of brown adipocytes-based therapy and pharmacological intervention to increase BAT activity for the treatment of obesity and related diseases including insulin resistance, cardiovascular diseases and type 2 diabetes.

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    Authors and Affiliations

    1. Key Laboratory of Animal Ecology and Conservation Biology, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100101, China

      Xiaoxue Yuan, Meng Dong, Hyuek Jong Lee & Wanzhu Jin

    2. The University of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China

      Xiaoxue Yuan & Meng Dong

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    1. Xiaoxue Yuan
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    2. Meng Dong
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    Correspondence to Hyuek Jong Lee.

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    SPECIAL TOPIC: Lipid Metabolism and Human Metabolic Disorder

    Xiaoxue Yuan and Meng Dong contributed equally to this work.

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    Yuan, X., Dong, M., Lee, H.J. et al. Brown adipose tissue and its therapeutic application. Sci. Bull. 61, 1498–1503 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11434-016-1051-9

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