Regulation of Adipose Thermogenesis and its Critical Role in Glucose and Lipid Metabolism

Int J Biol Sci. 2022 Jul 27;18(13):4950-4962. doi: 10.7150/ijbs.75488. eCollection 2022.

Abstract

The function of the adipose tissue is influenced by complex interactions between genetics, epigenetics, and the environment, and its dysfunction can cause a variety of metabolic diseases, such as obesity or type 2 diabetes (T2D). The beige/brown adipose tissue plays a crucial role in regulating glucose and lipid metabolism by increasing energy metabolism to generate heat. The adipose tissue thermogenic program is a complex network that involves many signaling pathways regulated by coding RNAs (cRNAs) that encode transcription factor, and non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs) including microRNAs (miRNAs) and long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs). This article discusses factors that regulate adipose tissue thermogenesis, including cRNAs and ncRNAs, and the important role of thermogenic adipose tissue in obesity-related metabolic syndrome. Several studies have shown that some cRNAs and ncRNAs can modulate the thermogenic function of adipose tissue in different ways. This article reviews the roles of cRNAs and ncRNAs in regulating thermogenesis in the beige/brown adipose tissue and the important role of the beige/brown adipose tissue in maintaining the balance of glucose and lipid metabolism in the body.

Keywords: Beige adipose; Brown adipose; Coding RNA; Non-coding RNA; Obesity; metabolic syndrome; thermogenesis.

Publication types

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

MeSH terms

  • Adipose Tissue, Brown / metabolism
  • Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2* / metabolism
  • Energy Metabolism
  • Glucose / metabolism
  • Humans
  • Lipid Metabolism* / genetics
  • Obesity / genetics
  • Obesity / metabolism
  • Thermogenesis / genetics

Substances

  • Glucose