Gamma-Aminobutyric Acid Signaling in Brown Adipose Tissue Promotes Systemic Metabolic Derangement in Obesity

Accumulating evidence suggests that adult humans possess active brown adipose tissue (BAT) that may contribute significantly to systemic metabolism because of its high energy consumption capacity. Recently, we demonstrated that metabolic stress induced BAT hypoxia and impaired mitochondrial function, leading to the development of BAT “whitening” and systemic metabolic dysfunction in murine obese models. Various neurotransmitters are known to be involved in the maintenance of BAT homeostasis. Among them, the gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) signaling in the central nervous system is well accepted to have anti-obesity effects through the activation of the sympathetic nervous system. Here we show the previously unknown role of peripheral GABA signaling in the development of systemic metabolic dysfunction in obesity. We generated an obese model by imposing a high fat/high sucrose (HFHS) diet on C57BL/6NCr mice. Mass spectrometry analysis demonstrated a significant increase in GABA level in BAT of the dietary obese model. Addition of GABA into drinking water induced BAT whitening, reduced the thermogenic response upon cold tolerance test, and promoted systemic metabolic dysfunction in the obese mice. Mitochondrial calcium is important for the maintenance of mitochondrial homeostasis, whereas calcium overload is reported to inhibit mitochondrial function. Treatment of BAT cells with GABA markedly increased mitochondrial calcium level, promoted the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS), and inhibited mitochondrial respiration. These results indicate that peripheral GABA contributes to the development of systemic metabolic dysfunction by inhibiting BAT function in obesity. The inhibition of peripheral GABA signaling would become a new therapeutic target for obesity and diabetes.

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P1588The pathological role of gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) signaling in promoting brown adipose tissue dysfunction in obesity

European Heart Journal ◽

10.1093/eurheartj/ehx502.p1588 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 38 (suppl_1) ◽

Author(s):

R. Ikegami ◽

I. Shimizu ◽

T. Sato ◽

Y. Jiao ◽

Y. Yoshida ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Adipose Tissue ◽

Brown Adipose Tissue ◽

Aminobutyric Acid ◽

Gamma Aminobutyric Acid ◽

Adipose Tissue Dysfunction ◽

Brown Adipose ◽

Gaba Signaling

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Functional characterization of human brown adipose tissue metabolism

Biochemical Journal ◽

10.1042/bcj20190464 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 477 (7) ◽

pp. 1261-1286 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Marie Anne Richard ◽

Hannah Pallubinsky ◽

Denis P. Blondin

Keyword(s):

Adipose Tissue ◽

Brown Adipose Tissue ◽

Functional Characterization ◽

Human Infants ◽

Positron Emission ◽

Brown Adipose ◽

Treatment Of Obesity ◽

And Function

Brown adipose tissue (BAT) has long been described according to its histological features as a multilocular, lipid-containing tissue, light brown in color, that is also responsive to the cold and found especially in hibernating mammals and human infants. Its presence in both hibernators and human infants, combined with its function as a heat-generating organ, raised many questions about its role in humans. Early characterizations of the tissue in humans focused on its progressive atrophy with age and its apparent importance for cold-exposed workers. However, the use of positron emission tomography (PET) with the glucose tracer [18F]fluorodeoxyglucose ([18F]FDG) made it possible to begin characterizing the possible function of BAT in adult humans, and whether it could play a role in the prevention or treatment of obesity and type 2 diabetes (T2D). This review focuses on the in vivo functional characterization of human BAT, the methodological approaches applied to examine these features and addresses critical gaps that remain in moving the field forward. Specifically, we describe the anatomical and biomolecular features of human BAT, the modalities and applications of non-invasive tools such as PET and magnetic resonance imaging coupled with spectroscopy (MRI/MRS) to study BAT morphology and function in vivo, and finally describe the functional characteristics of human BAT that have only been possible through the development and application of such tools.

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