ADIPONECTIN, A FAT CELL HORMONE
Factors including PPAR-gand caloric availability influence adiponectin synthesis and secretion. Once released, adiponectin increases free fatty acid (FFA) transport, oxidation, and dissipation in skeletal muscle. It also increases the liver’s sensitivity to insulin either directly or by lowering circulating lipids. (Reprinted with permission from A.R. Salitel, Nature Med, 7:887–8, 2001.)
Starvation is rarely a problem these days for those in industrialized nations. But sufficiency is not cost-free, and as Western waistlines expand, so too does the incidence of associated problems, such as type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease. So, a protein secreted by fat cells, and linked to both insulin resistance and atherosclerosis, would likely receive a lot of attention.
This issue's Hot Papers shed light on the action of adiponectin, an adipocyte-specific protein discovered in the mid-1990s. Two articles show that adiponectin promotes fatty-acid oxidation by muscle: the first, a collaboration between Joachim Fruebis ...
