Brown adipose tissue volume and 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose uptake are not associated with energy intake in young human adults

Guillermo Sanchez-Delgado; Francisco M Acosta; Borja Martinez-Tellez; Graham Finlayson; Catherine Gibbons; Idoia Labayen; Jose M Llamas-Elvira; Angel Gil; John E Blundell; Jonatan R Ruiz

doi:10.1093/ajcn/nqz300

Brown adipose tissue volume and 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose uptake are not associated with energy intake in young human adults

Am J Clin Nutr. 2020 Feb 1;111(2):329-339. doi: 10.1093/ajcn/nqz300.

Authors

Affiliations

¹ PROFITH (PROmoting FITness and Health through Physical Activity) Research Group, Sport and Health University Research Institute (iMUDS), Department of Physical Education and Sport, Faculty of Sport Sciences, University of Granada, Granada, Spain.
² Department of Medicine, Division of Endocrinology, and Einthoven Laboratory for Experimental Vascular Medicine, Leiden University Medical Centre, Leiden, the Netherlands.
³ School of Psychology, Faculty of Medicine and Health, University of Leeds, Leeds, United Kingdom.
⁴ ELIKOS Research Group, Institute for Innovation & Sustainable Development in Food Chain (IS-FOOD), Department of Health Sciences, Public University of Navarra, Pamplona, Spain.
⁵ Servicio de Medicina Nuclear, Hospital Universitario Virgen de las Nieves, Granada, Spain.
⁶ Instituto de Investigación Biosanitaria de Granada (ibs. GRANADA), Granada, Spain.
⁷ Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology II, Institute of Nutrition and Food Technology, Centre for Biomedical Research, University of Granada, Granada, Spain.
⁸ Biomedical Research Networking Center for Physiopathology of Obesity and Nutrition (CIBEROBN), Carlos III Health Institute, Madrid, Spain.

Abstract

Background: Several studies have explored the role of human brown adipose tissue (BAT) in energy expenditure. However, the link between BAT and appetite regulation needs to be more rigorously examined.

Objectives: We aimed to investigate the associations of BAT volume and 18F-fluordeoxyglucose (18F-FDG) uptake after a personalized cold exposure with energy intake and appetite-related sensations in young healthy humans.

Methods: A total of 102 young adults (65 women; age: 22.08 ± 2.17 y; BMI: 25.05 ± 4.93 kg/m 2) took part in this cross-sectional study. BAT volume, BAT 18F-FDG uptake, and skeletal muscle 18F-FDG uptake were assessed by means of static 18F-FDG positron-emission tomography and computed tomography scans after a 2-h personalized exposure to cold. Energy intake was estimated via an objectively measured ad libitum meal and three nonconsecutive 24-h dietary recalls. Appetite-related sensations (i.e., hunger and fullness) were recorded by visual analog scales before and after a standardized breakfast (energy content = 50% of basal metabolic rate) and the ad libitum meal. Body composition was assessed by a whole-body DXA scan.

Results: BAT volume and 18F-FDG uptake were not associated with quantified ad libitum energy intake (all P > 0.088), nor with habitual energy intake estimated from the 24-h dietary recalls (all P > 0.683). Lean mass was positively associated with both the energy intake from the ad libitum meal (β: 17.612, R2 = 0.213; P < 0.001) and the habitual energy intake (β: 16.052, R2 = 0.123; P = 0.001). Neither the interaction BAT volume × time elapsed after meal consumption nor that of BAT 18F-FDG uptake × time elapsed after meal consumption had any significant influence on appetite-related sensations after breakfast or after meal consumption (all P > 0.3).

Conclusions: Neither BAT volume, nor BAT 18F-FDG uptake after cold stimulation, are related to appetite regulation in young adults. These results suggest BAT plays no important role in the regulation of energy intake in humans.This trial was registered at clinicaltrials.gov as NCT02365129.

Keywords: appetite; brown fat; energy balance; obesity; thermogenesis.

Publication types

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

MeSH terms

Adipose Tissue, Brown / metabolism*
Adult
Body Composition
Diet Records
Energy Intake*
Female
Fluorodeoxyglucose F18 / pharmacokinetics*
Humans
Hunger
Young Adult

Substances

Fluorodeoxyglucose F18

Associated data

ClinicalTrials.gov/NCT02365129