Exposure to high fatty acids (FAs) induces whole body and skeletal muscle insulin resistance. The globular form of the adipokine, adiponectin (gAd), stimulates FA oxidation and improves insulin sensitivity; however, its ability to prevent lipid-induced insulin resistance in humans has not been tested. The purpose of this study was to determine 1) whether acute (4 h) exposure to 2 mM palmitate w...

When EBV-transformed human B cells are removed from conventional cell cultures, washed, and seeded at a low cell density in serum-free medium, their growth potential is greatly diminished. Fresh serum restores the growth of low density B cell cultures. We have traced this restorative effect to an essential factor present in the lipid fraction of serum and have identified it as all-trans retinol...

To understand the signaling and growth-inhibitory effects of retinoids, we have examined the metabolism of [3H]retinol in a number of estrogen receptor-positive (ER+) and estrogen receptor-negative (ER-) human breast cancer cell lines. We have also assayed the metabolism of [3H]retinol in normal human mammary epithelial cells. The ER+ breast cancer cell lines MCF-7 and T47D produce [3H]4-oxoret...

Fatty acid-free albumin has been the standard carrier for intravenous infusion of fatty acids to study in vivo lipid metabolism. However, subjects can have adverse reactions to infusion of albumin. We sought an alternative to albumin as a carrier for intravenous infusion of fatty acids, using the pig as a model. Cyclodextrins are naturally occurring water-soluble molecules that can serve as car...

Determination of the BSA-palmitate high-affinity binding constant ( K a) traditionally relied on the heptane-water partitioning technique. We used this technique to calculate K a for the BSA-[3H]palmitate complex, to determine if K a was independent of protein concentration, and to determine if the unbound [3H]palmitate concentration is constant at different BSA concentrations using constant BS...

BACKGROUND Saturated fatty acids are toxic to liver cells and are believed to play a central role in the pathogenesis of non-alcoholic steatohepatitis. In experimental steatohepatitis induced by feeding mice a methionine-choline-deficient (MCD) diet, the degree of liver damage is related to dietary sugar content, which drives de novo lipogenesis and promotes the hepatic accumulation of saturate...

Bovine and human retinol-retinol-binding protein (RBP) were iodinated to high specific activity. At least 34% of the iodinated material was native and retained its retinol chromophore as judged by its characteristic ability to bind to plasma prealbumin. Bovine and human retinol-125I-RBP were found to bind specifically to intact isolated pigment epithelium cells from bovine eyes. The specific bi...

Modulatory effects of l-carnitine, acetate, propionate, and 5-tetradecyloxy-2-furoic acid (TOFA; an inhibitor acetyl-CoA carboxylase) on oxidation esterification [1-14C]-palmitate were studied in hepatocytes isolated from phlorizin-treated control wethers. Our hypotheses that (1) palmitate would be greater sheep injected with phlorizin; (2) l-carnitine increase more (3) acetate propionate decre...

The hypothesis that substrate availability can alter contractile function in reperfused myocardium after global ischemia was investigated in this study. Isolated rabbit hearts were placed in a dual tuned C'PI13C) NMR probe with a 9.4-T magnet and perfused with the following substrates given individually or in combination: 10 mM glucose, 2 mM palmitate, and 2.5 mM [3-13C]pyruvate. Glucose was th...

Oleate has been shown to protect against palmitate-induced insulin resistance. The present study investigates mechanisms involved in the interaction between oleate and palmitate on insulin-stimulated glucose uptake by L6 skeletal muscle cells. L6 myotubes were cultured for 6 h with palmitate or oleate alone, and combinations of palmitate with oleate, with and without phosphatidylinositol 3-kina...