TY - JOUR
T1 - MicroRNAs are key regulators of brown adipogenesis
AU - Zhou, Joseph Yi
AU - Li, Lixin
N1 - Funding Information:
This work is supported by a Central Michigan University ( 42029 ) starting fund to L.L.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2014 Elsevier B.V.
PY - 2014/11
Y1 - 2014/11
N2 - The recent discovery of microRNA, thousands of short, non-coding strands of RNA that regulate gene expressions on the transcriptional level throughout the body, raises the possibility of their roles as therapeutic targets in the treatment of a diverse range of diseases including diabetes, cancer, cardiovascular disease, and obesity. Specifically, their potential as therapeutic targets in the treatment of obesity has been highlighted. Brown adipose tissue containing a large number of mitochondria and expressing Ucp-1 is metabolically active through dissipating energy as heat in cold temperatures. Brown adipose, which was previously thought to be present only in neonatal and infants, has been recently unexpectedly identified in various anatomical regions of the adult human body. Furthermore, brown adipocytes have been shown to originate from skeletal and cardiovascular myoblast progenitor cells. Several identified microRNAs participate in the regulation of brown adipocyte differentiation through pathways involving the Prdm16 and C/ebp-β program. These miRNAs are potential therapeutic targets in the induction of brown adipocyte lineage differentiation from myoblast and white adipose, through which the Ucp-1 expression is regulated to increase calorie expenditure and reduce body weight in obese individuals. This review focuses on the current understanding of miRNAs on the regulation of brown adipogenesis.
AB - The recent discovery of microRNA, thousands of short, non-coding strands of RNA that regulate gene expressions on the transcriptional level throughout the body, raises the possibility of their roles as therapeutic targets in the treatment of a diverse range of diseases including diabetes, cancer, cardiovascular disease, and obesity. Specifically, their potential as therapeutic targets in the treatment of obesity has been highlighted. Brown adipose tissue containing a large number of mitochondria and expressing Ucp-1 is metabolically active through dissipating energy as heat in cold temperatures. Brown adipose, which was previously thought to be present only in neonatal and infants, has been recently unexpectedly identified in various anatomical regions of the adult human body. Furthermore, brown adipocytes have been shown to originate from skeletal and cardiovascular myoblast progenitor cells. Several identified microRNAs participate in the regulation of brown adipocyte differentiation through pathways involving the Prdm16 and C/ebp-β program. These miRNAs are potential therapeutic targets in the induction of brown adipocyte lineage differentiation from myoblast and white adipose, through which the Ucp-1 expression is regulated to increase calorie expenditure and reduce body weight in obese individuals. This review focuses on the current understanding of miRNAs on the regulation of brown adipogenesis.
KW - Beige fat
KW - Brown adipocytes
KW - MicroRNA
KW - Obesity
KW - Prdm16
KW - White adipose tissue
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84907778403&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.bbalip.2014.08.009
DO - 10.1016/j.bbalip.2014.08.009
M3 - Review article
AN - SCOPUS:84907778403
VL - 1841
SP - 1590
EP - 1595
JO - Biochimica et Biophysica Acta - Molecular and Cell Biology of Lipids
JF - Biochimica et Biophysica Acta - Molecular and Cell Biology of Lipids
SN - 1388-1981
IS - 11
ER -