Nutrition and Obesity Group, Department of Pharmacy and Food Sciences, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU) and Lucio Lascaray Research Institute, 01006 Vitoria-Gasteiz, Spain.
BIOARABA Health Research Institute, 01006 Vitoria-Gasteiz, Spain.
Int J Mol Sci. 2022 Jul 26;23(15):8250. doi: 10.3390/ijms23158250.
The present narrative review gathers the studies reported so far, addressing sex differences in the effects of cold exposure, feeding pattern and age on brown adipose tissue (BAT) thermogenesis and white adipose tissue (WAT) browning. In rodents, when exposed to decreasing temperatures, females activate thermogenesis earlier. Results obtained in humans go in the same line, although they do not provide results as solid as those obtained in rodents. Regarding the effects of overfeeding, interesting sex differences on BAT thermogenic capacity have been reported, and the greater or lower sensitivity of each sex to this dietary situation seems to be dependent on the type of feeding. In the case of energy restriction, females are more sensitive than males. In addition, sex differences have also been observed in thermogenesis changes induced by phenolic compound administration. During sexual development, an increase in BAT mass and BAT activity takes place. This phenomenon is greater in boys than in girls, probably due to its relation to muscle-mass growth. The opposite situation takes place during ageing, a lifespan period where thermogenic capacity declines, this being more acute in men than in women. Finally, the vast majority of the studies have reported a higher susceptibility to developing WAT browning amongst females. The scarcity of results highlights the need for further studies devoted to analysing this issue, in order to provide valuable information for a more personalised approach.
本综述收集了迄今为止报道的研究，探讨了冷暴露、摄食模式和年龄对棕色脂肪组织（BAT）产热和白色脂肪组织（WAT）褐变的性别差异。在啮齿动物中，当暴露于温度下降时，雌性更早地激活产热。人类的研究结果也与此一致，尽管它们不如啮齿动物的研究结果那样可靠。关于过食的影响，已经报道了有趣的性别差异对 BAT 产热能力的影响，每种性别的敏感性更高或更低似乎取决于喂养方式。在能量限制的情况下，女性比男性更敏感。此外，在酚类化合物给药引起的产热变化中也观察到了性别差异。在性发育过程中，BAT 质量和 BAT 活性增加。这种现象在男孩中比女孩中更为明显，可能与肌肉质量的增长有关。相反的情况发生在衰老过程中，这个生命阶段的产热能力下降，男性比女性更为明显。最后，绝大多数研究报告称女性更容易发生 WAT 褐变。结果的缺乏突出表明需要进一步研究这个问题，以便为更个性化的方法提供有价值的信息。
