Adipose tissue macrophage–derived microRNA-210-3p disrupts systemic insulin sensitivity by silencing GLUT4 in obesity

Management of chronic obesity-associated metabolic disorders is a key challenge for biomedical researchers. During chronic obesity, visceral adipose tissue (VAT) undergoes substantial transformation characterized by a unique lipid-rich hypoxic AT microenvironment (ATenv) which plays a crucial role in VAT dysfunction, leading to insulin resistance (IR) and type 2 diabetes(T2D). Here, we demonstrate that obese ATenv triggers the release of miR-210-3p microRNA-loaded extracellular vesicles (EVs) from adipose tissue macrophages (ATMs), which disseminate miR-210-3p to neighboring adipocytes, skeletal muscle cells, and hepatocytes through paracrine and endocrine actions, thereby influencing insulin sensitivity. Moreover, EVs collected from Dicer-silenced miR-210-3p-overexpressed bone marrow-derived macrophages (BMDMs), induce glucose intolerance and IR in lean mice. Mechanistically, miR-210-3p interacts with the 3′-UTR of GLUT4 mRNA and silences its expression, compromising cellular glucose uptake and insulin sensitivity. Therapeutic inhibition of miR-210-3p in VAT notably rescues high-fat diet (HFD)-fed mice from obesity-induced systemic glucose intolerance. Thus, targeting ATM-specific miR-210-3p during obesity could be a promising strategy for managing IR and T2D.