title: Insulin resistance, adipose depots and gut: interactions and pathological implications.
abstract: This review article focuses on the many metabolic actions of insulin at the level of muscle, liver and adipose tissue. In terms of pathogenetic mechanisms, the condition of insulin resistance is complex, as multiple genetic and environmental factors, among which an increasingly sedentary lifestyle associated with high-fat diet, mutually interact according to variable patterns in time in any given individual. It is well recognized that obesity (in particular abdominal obesity) favours the development of insulin resistance. Here we evaluate the impact of obesity and ectopic fat accumulation (visceral and hepatic) on insulin resistance at the level of different target organs, i.e., muscle, liver and adipose tissue. The roles of the gut and the liver, in particular of bile acids and gut microflora, are also discussed as possible determinants of energy balance and glucose metabolism.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Clinical Physiology, Stable Isotope Laboratory, CNR-National Research Council, Pisa, Italy. amalia@ifc.cnr.it
authors.forename: Amalia
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Gastaldelli
authors.forename: Andrea
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Natali
authors.forename: Roberto
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Vettor
authors.forename: Stefano Ginanni
authors.initials: SG
authors.lastname: Corradini
mesh_terms: D050153:Abdominal Fat / Q000503:physiopathology*; D041981:Gastrointestinal Tract / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000382:microbiology; D006801:Humans; D007333:Insulin Resistance / Q000502:physiology*; D008099:Liver / Q000503:physiopathology; D009765:Obesity / Q000503:physiopathology