title: Adipokines and the Endocrine Role of Adipose Tissues.
abstract: The last two decades have witnessed a shift in the consideration of white adipose tissue as a mere repository of fat to be used when food becomes scarce to a true endocrine tissue releasing regulatory signals, the so-called adipokines, to the whole body. The control of eating behavior, the peripheral insulin sensitivity, and even the development of the female reproductive system are among the physiological events controlled by adipokines. Recently, the role of brown adipose tissue in human physiology has been recognized. The metabolic role of brown adipose tissue is opposite to white fat; instead of storing fat, brown adipose tissue is a site of energy expenditure via adaptive thermogenesis. There is growing evidence that brown adipose tissue may have its own pattern of secreted hormonal factors, the so-called brown adipokines, having distinctive biological actions on the overall physiological adaptations to enhance energy expenditure.
authors.affiliation: Departament de Bioquímica i Biologia Molecular, Institute of Biomedicine (IBUB), University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.|CIBER Fisiopatología de la Obesidad y Nutrición, Barcelona, Spain.
authors.forename: Marta
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Giralt
authors.affiliation: Departament de Bioquímica i Biologia Molecular, Institute of Biomedicine (IBUB), University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.|CIBER Fisiopatología de la Obesidad y Nutrición, Barcelona, Spain.
authors.forename: Rubén
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Cereijo
authors.affiliation: Departament de Bioquímica i Biologia Molecular, Institute of Biomedicine (IBUB), University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain. fvillarroya@ub.edu.|CIBER Fisiopatología de la Obesidad y Nutrición, Barcelona, Spain. fvillarroya@ub.edu.
authors.forename: Francesc
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Villarroya
mesh_terms: D054392:Adipokines / Q000502:physiology*; D000273:Adipose Tissue / Q000502:physiology*; D000818:Animals; D004734:Energy Metabolism; D005230:Fatty Acids, Nonesterified / Q000378:metabolism; D006801:Humans
chemical_list: D054392:Adipokines; D005230:Fatty Acids, Nonesterified
keywords: Adipokine; Brown adipocyte; Endocrine; Inflammation; White adipocyte