NPs -- heart hormones that regulate brown fat?
Thermogenesis in brown adipose tissue (BAT) is well characterized as being under the control of the sympathetic nervous system. The energy-burning capacity of BAT makes it an attractive target for anti-obesity therapies. However, previous attempts to manipulate BAT's sympathetic activation have lacked specificity. In this issue of the JCI, Bordicchia et al. provide new data indicating that cardiac natriuretic peptides (NPs) are also able to activate thermogenic machinery in adipose tissue. Their findings suggest a novel strategy to increase energy dissipation in adipose tissue, independent of adrenergic receptors.
University of Cambridge Metabolic Research Laboratories, Institute of Metabolic Science, Cambridge, UK.
Andrew J
AJ
Whittle
Antonio
A
Vidal-Puig
D002001:Adipose Tissue, Brown / Q000378:metabolism*; D000818:Animals; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009206:Myocardium / Q000378:metabolism*; D045265:Natriuretic Peptides / Q000378:metabolism*; D048051:p38 Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinases / Q000378:metabolism*
D045265:Natriuretic Peptides; D048051:p38 Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinases