The limited expandability of subcutaneous adipose tissue, due to reduced ability to recruit and differentiate new adipocytes, prevents its buffering effect in obesity and is characterized by expanded adipocytes (hypertrophic obesity). Bone morphogenetic protein-4 (BMP4) plays a key role in regulating adipogenic precursor cell commitment and differentiation. We found BMP4 to be induced and secre...

The relative balance between the quantity of white and brown adipose tissue can profoundly affect lipid storage and whole-body energy homeostasis. However, the mechanisms regulating the formation, expansion, and interconversion of these 2 distinct types of fat remain unknown. Recently, the lysosomal degradative pathway of macroautophagy has been identified as a regulator of cellular differentia...

The complete differentiation program of preadipose cells can be divided into early and late events. The expression of early markers takes place at growth arrest (G1/S boundary), whereas that of late markers, leading to terminal differentiation, takes place after a limited number of mitoses of early marker-containing cells. Only terminal differentiation requires the presence of growth hormone an...

BACKGROUND A peptidyl prolyl cis/trans isomerase, Pin1, regulates insulin signal transduction. Pin1 reduces responses to insulin stimulation by binding CRTC2 (CREB-regulated transcriptional co-activator 2) and PPARγ (peroxisome prolifereator- activated receptor γ), but conversely enhances insulin signaling by binding IRS-1 (insulin receptor substrate-1), Akt kinase, and Smad3. Therefore, it is ...

Leptin has been shown to reduce body fat in vivo. Adipocytes express the leptin receptor, so it is realistic to expect a direct effect of leptin on adipocyte growth and metabolism. However, in vitro studies examining the effect of leptin on adipocyte metabolism require supraphysiologic doses of the protein to see a decrease in lipogenesis or stimulation of lipolysis, implying an indirect action...

objective(s): studies have confirmed that microgravity, as a mechanical factor, influences both differentiation and function of mesenchymal stem cells. here we investigated the effects of simulated microgravity on neural differentiation of human adipose-derived stem cells (adscs). materials and methods:we have used a fast rotating clinostat (clinorotation) to simulate microgravity condition. re...

Introduction:   Mesenchymal stem cells have the potential of self-renewal and differentiation into different cell types, including blood cells, heart, nerves and cartilage, and have unlimited power for division. These cells can be obtained from cord, before implantation from fertilized cells and also from various tissues of adults although the differentiation power and the ability to reproduce ...

BACKGROUND The development of insulin resistance (IR) in mouse models of obesity and type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM) is characterized by progressive accumulation of inflammatory macrophages and subpopulations of T cells in the visceral adipose. Regulatory T cells (Tregs) may play a critical role in modulating tissue inflammation via their interactions with both adaptive and innate immune mechanis...

One of the most common regenerative therapies is autologous fat grafting, which frequently suffers from unexpected volume loss. One approach is to deliver adipose stem cells encapsulated in the engineered hydrogels supportive of cell survival, differentiation, and integration after transplant. We describe an encapsulating, biomimetic poly(ethylene)-glycol hydrogel, with embedded peptides for at...

Perilipin 1 (Plin1) localizes at the surface of lipid droplets to regulate triglyceride storage and hydrolysis in adipocytes. Plin1 defect leads to low adiposity in mice and partial lipodystrophy in human. This study investigated the roles of Plin1 in adipocyte differentiation. Plin1 null (-/-) mice showed plenty of multilocular adipocytes and small unilocular adipocytes in adipose tissue, alon...