Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: UMLS:C0028754 (obesity)
 124,988 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

In human adipocyte plasma membranes, pertussis toxin catalysed the ADP-ribosylation of an apparently single 40 kDa protein. The same protein was also observed in Western blots by using an antibody which identifies the C-terminal decapeptide of Gi alpha (alpha subunit of Gi). In analogous experiments, cholera toxin and an antibody raised against the C-terminal decapeptide of Gs alpha (alpha subunit of Gs) were used to identify two proteins of 42 and 45 kDa, the former of which was more prominent. A method was developed to estimate the relative amounts of Gi and Gs in crude adipocyte plasma membranes in a single immunoblot by using the two antisera. In animal models, changes in the amounts of G-proteins have been suggested to explain alterations in hormone-responsiveness in hypothyroidism and obesity. However, the amounts of Gi and Gs were unaltered in thyroidectomized papillary-carcinoma patients who had been without hormone substitution for 4 weeks. In adipocyte plasma membranes prepared from markedly obese subjects, the amounts of both Gi alpha and Gs alpha as calculated per mg of protein were decreased, but the Gi/Gs ratio remained unaltered in comparison with control subjects.
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PMID:Guanine-nucleotide-binding proteins Gi and Gs in fat-cells from normal, hypothyroid and obese human subjects. 250 51

The sand rat (Psammomys obesus) is a desert rodent in which obesity and diabetes mellitus appeared only subsequent to feeding laboratory animal chow. To study the role of lipoprotein lipase in the development and maintenance of obesity in the sand rat, enzyme activity in various organs and in plasma of sand rats or albino rats was determined following a 20-hour fast, or 16 hours after injection of cholera toxin. Despite comparable change in body weight, an altered pattern of enzyme distribution and regulation was observed in the sand rat. Neither fasting nor cholera toxin had an effect on heart and daiphragm muscle lipoprotein lipase activity of the sand rat, but caused a 1.5- to 2-fold increase in the treated albino rats. By using an isolated perfused heart system, we were able to measure enzyme activity present in the heparin-releasable fraction that represents the functional pool of the enzyme. In both species, the heparin-releasable fraction of the heart increased twofold following fasting, though initial values were lower in sand rat. In both species, fasting and cholera toxin administration resulted in an increase in plasma and liver lipoprotein lipase activity. Adipose tissue lipoprotein lipase activity of sand rat, unlike the albino rats, was similar in the various fat regions and was not lowered by food deprivation or cholera toxin administration. After both treatments, sand rat plasma insulin levels exceeded fivefold those of albino rats. Adipose tissue lipoprotein lipase activity of fed and fasted normal and diabetic sand rats correlated negatively with plasma insulin and glucose levels.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
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PMID:Regulation of lipoprotein lipase activity in the sand rat: effect of nutritional state and cAMP modulation. 284 76

Perfusion of the forebrain with glucose at concentrations which alter neither plasma insulin nor glucose levels leads to sympathetic activation in some rats. We used the expression of Fos-like immunoreactivity (FLI) as an index of neuronal activation to examine the anatomic substrate underlying this phenomenon. Male Sprague-Dawley rats were infused via the right internal carotid artery with glucose (4 mg/kg/min) or equiosmolar mannitol for 60 min. They were killed 3 h after infusion onset and their brains reacted for FLI. As compared to mannitol-infused controls, 105% and 117% more neurons in hypothalamic ventromedial nucleus (VMN) and parvocellular portion of the paraventricular nuclei (PVN) of glucose-infused rats showed FLI, respectively. Importantly, only about half the glucose-infused rats showed increased FLI cells in these areas when compared to controls. In these same animals, glucose also significantly activated cells in the dorsomedial n. There was little FLI expressed in the magnocellular neurons of the PVN. This selective glucose response was bilateral in keeping with the bilateral distribution of India ink to midline hypothalamic structures following unilateral carotid infusions. Retrograde transport of cholera toxin B from medullary and thoracic spinal cord sympathetic outflow areas showed labeling of about 10% of PVN neurons with FLI activated by intracarotid glucose. There was no double labeling of VMN neurons. This supports the presence of anatomic pathways by which a subpopulation of glucose responsive PVN neurons might activate the sympathetic outflow areas in the medulla and spinal cord. The apparent bimodal distribution of glucose-induced activation of VMN and PVN neurons is in keeping with a similar bimodal pattern of sympathetic activation which obesity-prone but not obesity-resistant rats show following glucose infusions. Taken together, these data support a role for glucose-sensitive VMN and parvocellular PVN neurons in the weight gain phenotype specific sympathetic activation to glucose.
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PMID:Intracarotid glucose selectively increases Fos-like immunoreactivity in paraventricular, ventromedial and dorsomedial nuclei neurons. 906 50

Resistin was recently identified as a hormone secreted by adipocytes which leads to insulin resistance in vivo and in vitro and might therefore be an important link between obesity and diabetes. To clarify the regulation of resistin gene expression, 3T3-L1 adipocytes were treated with various agents known to modulate insulin sensitivity, and resistin mRNA was measured by quantitative real-time reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction. Interestingly, isoproterenol treatment reduced the level of resistin mRNA to 20% of non-treated control cells. This effect was dose-dependent with significant inhibition occurring at concentrations as low as 10 nM isoproterenol. Moreover, pretreatment of adipocytes with the beta-adrenergic antagonist propranolol almost completely reversed the inhibitory effect of isoproterenol, whereas addition of the alpha-adrenergic antagonist phentolamine did not have any effect. Furthermore, the effect of isoproterenol could be mimicked by activation of G(S)-proteins and adenylyl cyclase. Thus, both cholera toxin and forskolin decreased resistin mRNA expression in a dose-dependent fashion by up to 90% of control levels. Taken together, these results suggest that resistin gene expression is regulated by a protein kinase A-dependent pathway in 3T3-L1 adipocytes.
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PMID:Isoproterenol inhibits resistin gene expression through a G(S)-protein-coupled pathway in 3T3-L1 adipocytes. 1143 27

Recently, it has been shown that the fat-derived factor adiponectin is downregulated in insulin resistance and obesity and that replenishment of this adipocytokine reverses insulin resistance in mice. Growing evidence, on the other hand, suggests that raised levels of catecholamines due to increased activity of the sympathetic nervous system are an integral part in the development of insulin resistance. To clarify whether catecholamines might exert their insulin resistance-inducing effects at least partly via downregulation of adiponectin gene expression, 3T3-L1 adipocytes were treated with isoproterenol, and adiponectin mRNA was measured by quantitative real-time reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction. In fact, isoproterenol treatment reduced the level of adiponectin mRNA by about 75% in a dose-dependent fashion with significant inhibition detectable at concentrations as low as 10 nM isoproterenol. Furthermore, the inhibitory effect of isoproterenol was almost completely reversed by pretreatment of 3T3-L1 cells with the beta-adrenergic antagonist propranolol and the protein kinase A (PKA) inhibitor H-89. Moreover, the effects of isoproterenol could be mimicked by stimulation of stimulatory guanine nucleotide-binding (G(S))-proteins with cholera toxin and adenylyl cyclase with forskolin. Thus, our results suggest that adiponectin gene expression is severely suppressed by beta-adrenergic agents via activation of a G(S)-protein-PKA-dependent pathway. The data support a possible role of adiponectin in catecholamine-induced insulin resistance.
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PMID:Adiponectin gene expression is inhibited by beta-adrenergic stimulation via protein kinase A in 3T3-L1 adipocytes. 1168 87

This study was carried out to investigate the pattern of neuronal activations that occur in the obese fa/fa Zucker rat during food deprivation. The functional activation of neurons was estimated in lean and obese Zucker rats either fed ad libitum or food-deprived for 3, 6, 12, and 24 hours by assessing the expression of the immediate early gene c-fos. To identify the neurons instigating the activation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis in food-deprived obese rats, the retrograde tracer cholera toxin B subunit was injected in the parvocellular division of the paraventricular hypothalamic nucleus of obese rats and colocalized with c-fos mRNA during food deprivation. The expression of c-fos was barely detectable in food-deprived lean rats as well as in lean and obese animals fed ad libitum. However, 3 hours of food deprivation were sufficient to significantly induce c-fos in the paraventricular thalamic nucleus of obese rats. In addition, 6 and 12 hours of food deprivation resulted in the activation of regions that are similarly stimulated in "neurogenic" stresses. These regions include the parvocellular division of the paraventricular hypothalamic nucleus, the lateral septum, the basolateral amygdala, and some areas of the cortex. The highest number of neurons projecting to the parvocellular division of the paraventricular hypothalamic nucleus and revealing c-fos mRNA was, however, located in the paraventricular thalamic nucleus. In summary, the present results demonstrate in the obese fa/fa Zucker rats, that food deprivation leads to brain activations, which are in large part, similar to those induced by a "neurogenic" stress and that the paraventricular thalamic nucleus is involved in this response. These changes could contribute to the development of hyperphagia and obesity.
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PMID:Activation of the central nervous system in obese Zucker rats during food deprivation. 1174 36

Interleukin (IL)-6 has recently been shown to be an adipocyte-expressed cytokine. Its serum concentrations are elevated in insulin resistance and obesity. For further evaluation of IL-6 gene expression regulation, fully differentiated 3T3-L1 adipocytes were treated with various hormones known to induce insulin resistance. IL-6 mRNA content was measured by quantitative real-time reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction. Interestingly, treatment of adipocytes with 100 nM insulin, 10 micro M isoproterenol, 10 ng/ml tumour necrosis factor alpha (TNFalpha), and 500 ng/ml growth hormone (GH) for 16 h stimulated IL-6 mRNA expression 2.3-fold, 47-fold, 74-fold, and 1.4-fold, respectively (p < 0.01). In contrast, treatment with 100 nM dexamethasone significantly decreased IL-6 expression to 32 % of control levels (p < 0.01), whereas triiodothyronine and angiotensin 2 did not have any effect. Furthermore, stimulation of IL-6 expression was time-dependent with maximal stimulatory effects detectable after 1 h of insulin, isoproterenol, and GH addition and 12 h of TNFalpha, respectively. Moreover, isoproterenol's effect could be almost completely reversed by pretreatment of 3T3-L1 cells with the beta-adrenergic antagonist propranolol and mimicked by stimulation of G S -proteins with cholera toxin and adenylyl cyclase with forskolin and dibutyryl cAMP, respectively. Finally, IL-6 strongly induced its own expression in a time-dependent fashion. Taken together, our results demonstrate that IL-6 expression in adipocytes is governed by an autocrine positive feedback loop and upregulated by insulin, isoproterenol, TNFalpha, and GH. In concert with this adipocytokine's upregulation in states of decreased insulin sensitivity such as obesity and diabetes, the data support a possible role of IL-6 as a selectively regulated mediator of insulin resistance.
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PMID:Interleukin (IL)-6 mRNA expression is stimulated by insulin, isoproterenol, tumour necrosis factor alpha, growth hormone, and IL-6 in 3T3-L1 adipocytes. 1273 74

The United States is the epicenter of an obesity pandemic. As more countries acculturate to a Western lifestyle, rates of obesity and its sequelae are rising steadily in both adults and children. In response, a variety of weight-loss diets emphasizing alternative distributions of macronutrient classes have been promoted with considerable success. Among the most popular is the so-called "Atkins Diet," in which carbohydrate restriction is touted as the key to weight loss. Despite claims, however, evidence that weight loss is enhanced by means other than caloric restriction is lacking. Also lacking is evidence that fad diets produce sustainable weight loss. Most important, fad diets generally ignore or refute what is known about fundamental associations between dietary pattern and human health. Cancer, cholera, and AIDS induce rapid weight loss, highlighting the potential incompatibility of weight loss by any means with health. Available data suggest that long-term weight loss is most consistently achieved by adherence to a fat-restricted diet abundant in grains, vegetables, and fruit, along with regular physical activity, a lifestyle notably conducive to the promotion of overall health. Fad diets, potential harms of which are well characterized, should be presumed "guilty" of incompatibility with human health until or unless proved otherwise; the burden of proof should reside with proponents. In the interim, the clinical and public health communities should work to empower individuals with knowledge needed to reconcile weight control with health promotion; support policies that mitigate obesogenic environmental conditions; and offer unified resistance to the contagion of dietary propaganda.
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PMID:Pandemic obesity and the contagion of nutritional nonsense. 1465 42

Epidemiology in the past was concerned essentially by the study of infectious diseases which were the cause of huge mortalities especially since urbanisation was initiated. Epidemics of pest, typhus, cholera, influenza a.o. were common. The epidemics were halted by better hygiene, vaccination and antibiotics. Since the second world war epidemiology was dominated by an "epidemic" of new chronic diseases, especially heart disease and cancer. This was due to an increase in life span and to an increase in smoking habits and in the intake of saturated fat and a too small intake of fruit and vegetables combined with a too high intake of salt (NaCl). Gradually epidemiology evolved as the study of the causes, the distribution, the risk factors and the prevention of chronic diseases, but also including accidents, suicide, depression a.o., diseases with a mass occurrence at the population level. The importance of nutrition as a determinant of health gradually became recognized, but remains undervalued by the medical profession. Mortality at the population level follows some simple mathematical laws and can be represented accurately (r2>0.99) between the ages of 35 and 84 year by either Gompertz equations (ln mortality versus age) or by a polynomial equation (ln mortality versus age, age2). This is valid for all populations and both sexes and remains valid at times of great and rapid changes in mortality. This shows that measures for prevention should be directed towards the total population. The future of epidemiology should be directed towards the slowing of the ageing process at the population level by a healthy life style consisting of: not smoking, avoiding obesity, a fair amount of physical activity and a healthy nutrition i.e little salt, little saturated fat, an adequate amount of omega-3 fatty acids and a large amount of fruit and vegetables, with an occasional glass of red wine. This contains the secret of a long and healthy life. Conceptually it will be important to determine whether a maximum human life span, genetically determined, exists. A maximal rectangularization of the mortality curve should then be the ultimate goal. At the same time the possible re-emergence of old and new infectious diseases (SARS, Ebola, BSE, AIDS) should be kept in mind.
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PMID:Epidemiology: past, present and future. 1564 67

Recently, visfatin was characterized as a novel adipo-cytokine that is upregulated in obesity and exerts insulin-mimetic effects in various tissues. To clarify expression and regulation of this adipocytokine, visfatin mRNA was measured by quantitative real-time reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction in 3T3-L1 adipocytes during adipogenesis and after treatment with various hormones known to alter insulin sensitivity. Visfatin expression was about 6-fold higher in 3T3-L1 adipocytes in vitro as compared with epididymal fat in vivo and increased during adipogenic conversion more than 3-fold. Interestingly, 100 nM dexamethasone significantly increased visfatin mRNA by almost 1.5-fold. In contrast, 500 ng/ml growth hormone (GH), 10 ng/ml tumor necrosis factor (TNF) alpha, and 10 microM isoproterenol downregulated visfatin expression by 45%, 36%, and 43% respectively. Insulin did not influence synthesis of this adipocytokine. The effects of dexamethasone, GH, TNFalpha and isoproterenol were time- and dose-dependent. Furthermore, activation of G(s)-protein-coupled pathways by forskolin and cholera toxin was sufficient to significantly downregulate visfatin mRNA. Taken together, our results show a differential regulation of visfatin mRNA by insulin resistance-inducing hormones, supporting the view that this adipo-cytokine might be an interesting novel candidate linking core components of the metabolic syndrome such as obesity and insulin resistance.
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PMID:Hormonal regulation of the novel adipocytokine visfatin in 3T3-L1 adipocytes. 1593 Jan 60


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