June 7, 2015Open Access
Brown and Beige Fat: Molecular Parts of a Thermogenic Machine
Key Result
Brown and beige fat can increase energy expenditure through heat dissipation, offering potential pathways to address obesity and type 2 diabetes.
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Mammalian systems (rodents and humans) in the context of brown and beige fat research
This review summarizes recent progress in understanding the molecular, cellular, and physiological aspects of brown and beige fat, highlighting their potential role in energy balance and metabolic diseases like obesity and type 2 diabetes.
Abstract
The epidemic of obesity and type 2 diabetes has increased interest in pathways that affect energy balance in mammalian systems. Brown fat, in all of its dimensions, can increase energy expenditure through the dissipation of chemical energy in the form of heat, using mitochondrial uncoupling and perhaps other pathways. We discuss here some of the thermodynamic and cellular aspects of recent progress in brown fat research. This includes studies of developmental lineages of UCP1(+) adipocytes, including the discovery of beige fat cells, a new thermogenic cell type. We also discuss the physiology and transcriptional control of brown and beige cells in rodents and the state of current knowledge about human brown fat.