Medina-Gómez Gema, Vidal-Puig Antonio
Departamento de Bioquímica y Fisiología, Universidad Rey Juan Carlos, Facultad de Ciencias de la Salud, Alarcón, Madrid, España.
Endocrinol Nutr. 2009 Oct;56(8):404-11. doi: 10.1016/S1575-0922(09)72710-X.
Obesity is characterized by an increase of adipose tissue as a result of a positive imbalance between food intake and energy expenditure. Recent studies have indicated that adipocyte function is more complex than expected, since these cells have multiple functions and are integrated in a homeostatic network to optimize energy resources. As metabolic sensors in the body, adipocytes and the surrounding stromal vascular cells produce and secrete autocrine, paracrine and endocrine factors, able to regulate aspects involved in the development of adipocytes, as well as effects in peripheral organs important for metabolism. Regulation of these endocrine factors could lead to new therapeutic approaches targeted at aspects related to adipogenesis, preadipocyte proliferation and differentiation, inflammatory cytokine release and secretion, adipose tissue vascularization, and regulation of lipid metabolism or, alternatively, regulation of energy dissipation in mitochondria. In the study of the mechanisms of adipogenesis and remodulation of adipose tissue with respect to adipocyte size and function, an alternative and unorthodox strategy to improve obesity-associated metabolic complications could consist of increasing the storage capacity of adipose tissue to prevent a toxic response known as lipotoxicity.
肥胖的特征是由于食物摄入与能量消耗之间的正向失衡导致脂肪组织增加。最近的研究表明，脂肪细胞的功能比预期的更为复杂，因为这些细胞具有多种功能，并整合在一个稳态网络中以优化能量资源。作为体内的代谢传感器，脂肪细胞和周围的基质血管细胞产生并分泌自分泌、旁分泌和内分泌因子，这些因子能够调节与脂肪细胞发育相关的方面，以及对新陈代谢重要的外周器官中的效应。对这些内分泌因子的调节可能会导致针对脂肪生成、前脂肪细胞增殖与分化、炎性细胞因子释放与分泌、脂肪组织血管生成以及脂质代谢调节等方面的新治疗方法，或者是调节线粒体中的能量耗散。在研究脂肪生成机制以及脂肪组织相对于脂肪细胞大小和功能的重塑过程中，一种改善肥胖相关代谢并发症的替代且非传统策略可能包括增加脂肪组织的储存能力，以防止一种称为脂毒性的毒性反应。
