title: Respiration under control of uncoupling proteins: Clinical perspective.
abstract: The term 'uncoupling protein' was originally used for the mitochondrial membrane protein UCP1, which is uniquely present in mitochondria of brown adipocytes, thermogenic cells that regulate body temperature in small rodents, hibernators and mammalian newborns. In these cells, UCP1 acts as a proton carrier activated by free fatty acids and creates a shunt between complexes of the respiratory chain and ATP-synthase resulting in a futile proton cycling and dissipation of oxidation energy as heat. Recent identification of new homologues to UCP1 expressed in brown and white adipose tissue, muscle, brain and other tissues together with the hypothesis that these novel uncoupling proteins (UCPs) may regulate thermogenesis and/or fatty acid metabolism and furthermore may protect against free radical oxygen species production have generated considerable optimism for rapid advances in the identification of new targets for pharmacological management of complex pathological syndromes such as obesity, type 2 diabetes or chronic inflammatory diseases. However, since the physiological and biochemical roles of the novel UCPs are not yet clear, the main challenge today consists first of all in providing mechanistic explanation for their functions in cellular physiology. This lively awaited information may be the basis for potential pharmacological targeting of the UCPs in future.
authors.affiliation: Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Unit 9078, Faculty of Medicine René Descartes Paris 5, Paris, France.
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Nübel
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Ricquier
mesh_terms: D017209:Apoptosis / Q000502:physiology; D050197:Atherosclerosis / Q000503:physiopathology; D001835:Body Weight / Q000502:physiology; D002352:Carrier Proteins / Q000502:physiology*; D027682:Cation Transport Proteins / Q000502:physiology*; D019069:Cell Respiration / Q000502:physiology; D016922:Cellular Senescence / Q000502:physiology; D003924:Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 / Q000503:physiopathology; D004734:Energy Metabolism / Q000502:physiology; D006801:Humans; D007249:Inflammation / Q000503:physiopathology; D007473:Ion Channels; D008565:Membrane Proteins / Q000502:physiology*; D026901:Membrane Transport Proteins / Q000502:physiology*; D024101:Mitochondrial Proteins / Q000502:physiology*; D009385:Neoplastic Processes; D017382:Reactive Oxygen Species / Q000378:metabolism; D022722:Thermogenesis / Q000502:physiology; D000071256:Uncoupling Protein 1; D000071246:Uncoupling Protein 2; D000071247:Uncoupling Protein 3
chemical_list: D002352:Carrier Proteins; D027682:Cation Transport Proteins; D007473:Ion Channels; D008565:Membrane Proteins; D026901:Membrane Transport Proteins; D024101:Mitochondrial Proteins; D017382:Reactive Oxygen Species; C000604371:UCP1 protein, human; D000071256:Uncoupling Protein 1; D000071246:Uncoupling Protein 2; D000071247:Uncoupling Protein 3