Fatty acid binding proteins (FABPs) are low-molecular-mass, soluble, intracellular lipid carriers. Previous studies on adipocytes from adipocyte fatty acid binding protein (A-FABP)-deficient mice have revealed that both basal and isoproterenol-stimulated lipolysis were markedly reduced (Coe et al. 1999. J. Lipid Res. 40: 967-972). Herein, we report the construction of transgenic mice overexpres...

PURPOSE Triacylglycerol (TAG) lipolysis increases in diabetic hearts. However, it is not known which pathway for lipolysis catalyzes this process. Thus, using 1H-magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS), we determined whether TAG lipolysis in diabetic rat hearts requires acid lipase or neutral lipase activity. METHODS Rats were given IP injections of 110 mg streptozotocin (STZ)/kg. Forty-eight t...

OBJECTIVE To test the effects of novel oral hypoglycemic agent A-4166 on lipolysis and lipogenesis in adipocytes from normal rats and non-obese, hypertriglyceridemic, insulin resistant and hypertensive rats (HTG) fed basal or high fat diet. METHODS Adult male Wistar rats and hereditary HTG rats (from our own colony) were used. They were fed either basal or high fat diet for three weeks. On th...

This study investigated the molecular mechanisms by which a high-fat diet (HFD) dysregulates lipolysis and lipid metabolism in mouse epididymal (visceral, VC) and inguinal (subcutaneous, SC) adipocytes. Eight-weeks of HFD feeding increased adipose triglyceride lipase (ATGL) content and comparative gene identification-58 (CGI-58) expression, whereas hormone-sensitive lipase (HSL) phosphorylation...

Elevation of blood triglycerides, primarily as triglyceride-rich lipoproteins (TGRL), has been linked to cerebrovascular inflammation, vascular dementia, and Alzheimer's disease (AD). Brain microvascular endothelial cells and astrocytes, two cell components of the neurovascular unit, participate in controlling blood-brain barrier (BBB) permeability and regulating neurovascular unit homeostasis....

With Type 2 diabetes mellitus and cardiovascular disease prevalence on the rise, there is a growing need for improved strategies to prevent or treat obesity and insulin resistance, both of which are major risk factors for these chronic diseases. Impairments in adipose tissue lipid metabolism seem to play a critical role in these disorders. In the classical picture of intracellular lipid breakdo...

Obesity is associated with inflammation that can drive metabolic defects such as hyperlipidemia and insulin resistance. Specific metabolites can contribute to inflammation, but nutrient intake and obesity are also associated with altered bacterial load in metabolic tissues (i.e. metabolic endotoxemia). These bacterial cues can contribute to obesity-induced inflammation. The specific bacterial c...

Perilipin A coats the lipid storage droplets in adipocytes and is polyphosphorylated by protein kinase A (PKA); the fact that PKA activates lipolysis in adipocytes suggests a role for perilipins in this process. To assess whether perilipins participate directly in PKA-mediated lipolysis, we have expressed constructs coding for native and mutated forms of the two major splice variants of the per...

The role of inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) in the modulation of adipocyte lipolysis was investigated. Treatment of white and brown adipose cell lines and mouse adipose explants with a mixture of tumor necrosis factor-alpha, interferon-gamma, and lipopolysaccharide (LPS) doubled the lipolytic rate, and this was associated with marked induction of iNOS expression and nitric oxide (NO) pro...

We studied the influence of nitric oxide (NO) endogenously produced by adipocytes in lipolysis regulation. Diphenyliodonium (DPI), a nitric oxide synthase (NOS) inhibitor, was found to completely suppress NO synthesis in intact adipocytes and was thus used in lipolysis experiments. DPI was found to decrease both basal and dibutyryl cAMP (DBcAMP)-stimulated lipolysis. Inhibition of DBcAMP-stimul...