title: New Physiological Aspects of Brown Adipose Tissue.
abstract: Brown adipose tissue is specialised for the generation of heat by non-shivering mechanisms. In rodents, the tissue plays a role in energy balance and the development of obesity, as well as in thermoregulation. Studies using fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography (FDG-PET), together with the identification of uncoupling protein-1, have provided definitive evidence that brown adipose tissue is present in adult humans. Brown fat activity is stimulated by cold exposure, declines with age and is inversely proportional to BMI. This has led to renewed interest in the tissue as a therapeutic target for the treatment of obesity. Brown adipose tissue also plays a role in glucose disposal and triglyceride clearance, implicating it in the metabolic syndrome. A potential mechanism for increasing thermogenesis is by the 'browning' of white adipose depots through the recruitment of the recently identified third type of adipocyte - the brite (or beige) fat cell.
authors.affiliation: Clore Laboratory, Buckingham Institute for Translational Medicine, University of Buckingham, Hunter Street, Buckingham, MK18 1EG, UK. p.trayhurn@liverpool.ac.uk.|Obesity Biology Research Unit, Institute of Ageing and Chronic Diseases, University of Liverpool, Duncan Building, Liverpool, L69 3GA, UK. p.trayhurn@liverpool.ac.uk.|College of Science, King Saud University, Riyadh, 11451, Saudi Arabia. p.trayhurn@liverpool.ac.uk.
authors.forename: Paul
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Trayhurn
authors.affiliation: Clore Laboratory, Buckingham Institute for Translational Medicine, University of Buckingham, Hunter Street, Buckingham, MK18 1EG, UK.
authors.forename: Jonathan R S
authors.initials: JR
authors.lastname: Arch
keywords: Adipocyte; Brite; Brown adipose tissue; Brown fat; Glucose; Metabolic syndrome; Obesity; Thermogenesis; Triglyceride; Uncoupling protein-1; White adipose tissue; White fat