Warwickshire Institute for the Study of Diabetes, Endocrinology and Metabolism (WISDEM), University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust, Coventry CV2 2DX, UK.
Warwick Medical School, University of Warwick, Coventry CV4 7AL, UK.
Cells. 2020 Nov 16;9(11):2489. doi: 10.3390/cells9112489.
MicroRNAs (miRNAs) constitute a class of short noncoding RNAs which regulate gene expression by targeting messenger RNA, inducing translational repression and messenger RNA degradation. This regulation of gene expression by miRNAs in adipose tissue (AT) can impact on the regulation of metabolism and energy homeostasis, particularly considering the different types of adipocytes which exist in mammals, i.e., white adipocytes (white AT; WAT), brown adipocytes (brown AT; BAT), and inducible brown adipocytes in WAT (beige or brite or brown-in-white adipocytes). Indeed, an increasing number of miRNAs has been identified to regulate key signaling pathways of adipogenesis in BAT, brite AT, and WAT by acting on transcription factors that promote or inhibit adipocyte differentiation. For example, MiR-328, MiR-378, MiR-30b/c, MiR-455, MiR-32, and MiR-193b-365 activate brown adipogenesis, whereas MiR-34a, MiR-133, MiR-155, and MiR-27b are brown adipogenesis inhibitors. Given that WAT mainly stores energy as lipids, whilst BAT mainly dissipates energy as heat, clarifying the effects of miRNAs in different types of AT has recently attracted significant research interest, aiming to also develop novel miRNA-based therapies against obesity, diabetes, and other obesity-related diseases. Therefore, this review presents an up-to-date comprehensive overview of the role of key regulatory miRNAs in BAT, brite AT, and WAT.
微小 RNA(miRNAs)是一类短的非编码 RNA,通过靶向信使 RNA,诱导翻译抑制和信使 RNA 降解来调节基因表达。miRNAs 在脂肪组织(AT)中对基因表达的这种调节可以影响代谢和能量稳态的调节,特别是考虑到哺乳动物中存在不同类型的脂肪细胞,即白色脂肪细胞(白色 AT;WAT)、棕色脂肪细胞(棕色 AT;BAT)和 WAT 中的诱导性棕色脂肪细胞(米色或 brite 或白色脂肪细胞中的棕色脂肪细胞)。事实上,越来越多的 miRNAs 被鉴定为通过作用于促进或抑制脂肪细胞分化的转录因子来调节 BAT、brite AT 和 WAT 中脂肪生成的关键信号通路。例如,MiR-328、MiR-378、MiR-30b/c、MiR-455、MiR-32 和 MiR-193b-365 激活棕色脂肪生成,而 MiR-34a、MiR-133、MiR-155 和 MiR-27b 则是棕色脂肪生成的抑制剂。鉴于 WAT 主要将能量储存为脂肪,而 BAT 主要将能量以热量的形式消耗,因此阐明 miRNAs 在不同类型 AT 中的作用最近引起了人们的极大研究兴趣,旨在开发针对肥胖症、糖尿病和其他肥胖相关疾病的新型 miRNA 疗法。因此,本综述全面概述了关键调节 miRNAs 在 BAT、brite AT 和 WAT 中的作用。