Diabetes, Endocrinology and Obesity Branch, National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, National Institutes of Health Bethesda, MD, USA.
Front Endocrinol (Lausanne). 2012 Mar 14;3:35. doi: 10.3389/fendo.2012.00035. eCollection 2012.
Recent identification of active brown fat reserves in adult humans has re-stimulated interest in the role of brown adipocytes in energy homeostasis. In addition, there is accumulating evidence to support the concept of an alteration in energy balance through acquisition of brown fat features in traditional white fat depots. We recently described an important role played by the TGF-β/Smad3 signaling pathway in modulating the appearance of brown adipocytes in traditional white fat, and its implications to thermogenesis, mitochondrial energetics, energy expenditure, and protection from diabetes and obesity. Here we review the data supporting this phenomenon and put into perspective the promise of conversion of white fat to a brown fat state as a potential therapeutic option for obesity and diabetes.
最近在成年人体内发现活跃的棕色脂肪储备,重新激发了人们对棕色脂肪细胞在能量平衡中的作用的兴趣。此外,越来越多的证据支持通过在传统白色脂肪储存库中获得棕色脂肪特征来改变能量平衡的概念。我们最近描述了 TGF-β/Smad3 信号通路在调节传统白色脂肪中棕色脂肪细胞出现方面所起的重要作用,及其对产热、线粒体能量学、能量消耗以及预防糖尿病和肥胖的影响。在这里,我们回顾了支持这一现象的数据,并从转化白色脂肪为棕色脂肪状态作为肥胖和糖尿病潜在治疗选择的角度来看待这一现象的前景。