Effects of tumor necrosis factor (TNF) on lipolytic activities of rat heart.

Tumor Necrosis Factor (TNF) inhibits lipoprotein lipase activity in cultured myocytes and in the Langendorff rat heart after 3 h perfusion with TNF of glucocorticoid-pretreated rats. TNF acutely stimulates glyc(ogen)olysis and concomitantly endogenous lipolysis. The latter was significantly increased only when rats had been pretreated with glucocorticoid or fed a trierucate-rich diet. Under these conditions, contractile activity of the Langendorff hearts was acutely increased by TNF. The mechanism of the acute increase of contractile function and the accompanying increased glycolytic and lipolytic activities, by TNF, may be explained by increased cytosolic Ca2+ and cAMP levels.