Lower brown adipose tissue activity is associated with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease but not changes in the gut microbiota

Basma A Ahmed; Frank J Ong; Nicole G Barra; Denis P Blondin; Elizabeth Gunn; Stephan M Oreskovich; Jake C Szamosi; Saad A Syed; Emily K Hutchings; Norman B Konyer; Nina P Singh; Julian M Yabut; Eric M Desjardins; Fernando F Anhê; Kevin P Foley; Alison C Holloway; Michael D Noseworthy; Francois Haman; Andre C Carpentier; Michael G Surette; Jonathan D Schertzer; Zubin Punthakee; Gregory R Steinberg; Katherine M Morrison

doi:10.1016/j.xcrm.2021.100397

Lower brown adipose tissue activity is associated with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease but not changes in the gut microbiota

Cell Rep Med. 2021 Sep 14;2(9):100397. doi: 10.1016/j.xcrm.2021.100397. eCollection 2021 Sep 21.

Authors

Basma A Ahmed^{1

2}, Frank J Ong^{1

3}, Nicole G Barra^{1

2

4}, Denis P Blondin⁵, Elizabeth Gunn^{1

3}, Stephan M Oreskovich^{1

3}, Jake C Szamosi^{4

6}, Saad A Syed², Emily K Hutchings^{1

3}, Norman B Konyer⁷, Nina P Singh⁸, Julian M Yabut^{1

9}, Eric M Desjardins^{1

9}, Fernando F Anhê^{1

2

4}, Kevin P Foley^{1

2

4}, Alison C Holloway^{1

10}, Michael D Noseworthy^{1

7

8

11

12}, Francois Haman¹³, Andre C Carpentier¹⁴, Michael G Surette^{1

2

4

15}, Jonathan D Schertzer^{1

2

4}, Zubin Punthakee^{1

3

9}, Gregory R Steinberg^{1

2

9}, Katherine M Morrison^{1

3}

Affiliations

¹ Centre for Metabolism, Obesity and Diabetes Research, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON L8S 4L8, Canada.
² Department of Biochemistry and Biomedical Sciences, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON L8S 4L8, Canada.
³ Department of Pediatrics, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON L8S 4L8, Canada.
⁴ Farncombe Family Digestive Health Research Institute, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON L8S 4L8, Canada.
⁵ Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Department of Medicine, Division of Neurology, Centre de recherche du CHUS, Université de Sherbrooke, Sherbrooke, QC J1K 2R1, Canada.
⁶ Farncombe Metagenomics Facility, Department of Medicine, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON L8S 4L8, Canada.
⁷ Imaging Research Centre, St. Joseph's Healthcare, Hamilton, ON L8N 4A6, Canada.
⁸ Department of Radiology, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON L8S 4L8, Canada.
⁹ Division of Endocrinology and Metabolism, Department of Medicine, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON L8S 4L8, Canada.
¹⁰ Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON L8S 4L8, Canada.
¹¹ Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON L8S 4L8, Canada.
¹² School of Biomedical Engineering, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON L8S 4L8, Canada.
¹³ Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON K1N 6N5, Canada.
¹⁴ Division of Endocrinology, Department of Medicine, Centre de recherche du CHUS, Université de Sherbrooke, Sherbrooke, QC J1K 2R1, Canada.
¹⁵ Department of Medicine, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON L8S 4L8, Canada.

Abstract

In rodents, lower brown adipose tissue (BAT) activity is associated with greater liver steatosis and changes in the gut microbiome. However, little is known about these relationships in humans. In adults (n = 60), we assessed hepatic fat and cold-stimulated BAT activity using magnetic resonance imaging and the gut microbiota with 16S sequencing. We transplanted gnotobiotic mice with feces from humans to assess the transferability of BAT activity through the microbiota. Individuals with NAFLD (n = 29) have lower BAT activity than those without, and BAT activity is inversely related to hepatic fat content. BAT activity is not related to the characteristics of the fecal microbiota and is not transmissible through fecal transplantation to mice. Thus, low BAT activity is associated with higher hepatic fat accumulation in human adults, but this does not appear to have been mediated through the gut microbiota.

Keywords: adult humans; brown adipose tissue; cold exposure; fecal transplant; germ-free mice; hepatic fat; magnetic resonance imaging; microbiota; non-alcoholic fatty liver disease; proton density fat fraction.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Adipose Tissue, Brown / pathology*
Adiposity
Adolescent
Adult
Animals
Cold Temperature
Female
Gastrointestinal Microbiome*
Homeostasis
Humans
Male
Mice
Mice, Inbred C57BL
Middle Aged
Multivariate Analysis
Non-alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease / microbiology*
Non-alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease / pathology*
Young Adult

Abstract

Publication types

MeSH terms

Grants and funding