Thakur, Varsha, Michele T. Pritchard, Megan R. McMullen, and Laura E. Nagy. Adiponectin normalizes LPS-stimulated TNFproduction by rat Kupffer cells after chronic ethanol feeding. Am J Physiol Gastrointest Liver Physiol 290: G998–G1007, 2006. First published January 12, 2006; doi:10.1152/ajpgi.00553.2005.—Chronic ethanol feeding sensitizes Kupffer cells to activation by lipopolysaccharide (LPS)...

Adiponectin is an adipocyte-derived hormone that acts as a major regulator of energy metabolism and insulin sensitivity (1, 2). In plasma, adiponectin occurs in different forms: the trimeric low molecular weight (LMW), the hexameric middle molecular weight (MMW) and the 12-18meric high molecular weight (HMW) complexes (3). Adiponectin can be found in a smaller globular form, which is produced t...

Megakaryocyte (MK) development is critically informed by plasma membrane-localized receptors that integrate a multiplicity of environmental cues. Given that the current understanding about receptors and ligands involved in megakaryocytopoiesis is based on single targets, we performed a genome-wide search to identify a plasma membrane receptome for developing MKs. We identified 40 transmembrane ...

BACKGROUND Reproductive dysfunction in the diabetic female rat is associated with altered folliculogenesis and steroidogenesis. However, the molecular mechanisms involved in the reduction of steroid production have not been described. Adiponectin is an adipocytokine that has insulin-sensitizing actions including stimulation of glucose uptake in muscle and suppression of glucose production in li...

BACKGROUND Since the rise in plasma adiponectin levels in chronic kidney disease (CKD) patients has not yet been elucidated, we sought to investigate if patients on hemodialysis (HD) have altered expression of adiponectin receptors in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) compared to healthy subjects. METHODS This study included 31 patients with chronic kidney disease on HD and 33 health...

Adiponectin and, especially, its oligomeric complex composition have been suggested to be critical in determining insulin sensitivity. Pro-inflammatory cytokines play an important role in the development of insulin resistance in obesity and associated diseases. Therefore, we investigated the effect of long-term exposure of tumour necrosis factor (TNF)-alpha, interleukin (IL)-6, IL-1beta, and in...

Liver fibrosis is the consequence of chronic or repeated liver injury caused by hepatotoxic agents like alcohol and viruses, as well as immune and congenital metabolic disorders. Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), caused by obesity and abnormal lipid metabolism, may be the latest known cause of liver fibrosis and cirrhosis. Furthermore, NAFLD with obesity can provide a terrain in which a...

Chronic ethanol feeding sensitizes Kupffer cells to activation by lipopolysaccharide (LPS), leading to increased production of tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha). Adiponectin treatment protects mice from ethanol-induced liver injury. Because adiponectin has anti-inflammatory effects on macrophages, we hypothesized that adiponectin would normalize chronic ethanol-induced sensitization of Ku...