Nicotine improves obesity and hepatic steatosis and ER stress in diet-induced obese male rats

Molecular mechanisms of appetite and obesity: a role for brain AMPK

Feeding behaviour and energy storage are both crucial aspects of survival. Thus, it is of fundamental importance to understand the molecular mechanisms regulating these basic processes. The AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) has been revealed as one of the key molecules modulating energy homoeostasis. Indeed, AMPK appears to be essential for translating nutritional and energy requirements into generation of an adequate neuronal response, particularly in two areas of the brain, the hypothalamus and the hindbrain. Failure of this physiological response can lead to energy imbalance, ultimately with extreme consequences, such as leanness or obesity. Here, we will review the data that put brain AMPK in the spotlight as a regulator of appetite.

Influence of nicotine on choline-deficient, L-amino acid-defined diet-induced non-alcoholic steatohepatitis in rats

Nicotine, a major compound in cigarette smoke, decreases food intake and body weight gain in mammals; however, the influence of nicotine on the progression of non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) remains controversial. This study aimed to investigate the effect of nicotine on NASH in rat models. Male Wistar rats were fed choline-deficient, l-amino acid-defined (CDAA) diet and treated with nicotine or saline. Food intake, body weight gain, presence of hepatic steatosis, inflammation, and fibrosis were assessed 6 weeks after the rats were fed CDAA diet. Hepatic branch vagotomy was performed to elucidate the mechanism through which nicotine affected steatohepatitis. CDAA diet induced hepatic steatosis, inflammation, and fibrosis, as well as increased the expression of inflammation-related genes. Conversely, nicotine significantly attenuated food intake, body weight gain, and inhibited the CDAA-diet-induced hepatic steatosis, inflammation, and fibrosis, together with increased expression of inflammation-related genes. Hepatic branch vagotomy by itself decreased food intake, body weight gain, and attenuated the CDAA-diet-induced hepatic steatosis, but not inflammation. However, nicotine did not change the food intake, body weight gain, and CDAA diet-induced hepatic steatosis and inflammation in vagotomized rats. These results suggest that nicotine attenuates the CDAA-diet-induced hepatic steatosis and inflammation through the hepatic branch of the vagus nerve in rats.

EJE PRIZE 2017: Hypothalamic AMPK: a golden target against obesity?

AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) is a cellular gauge that is activated under conditions, such as low energy, increasing energy production and reducing energy waste. Centrally, the AMPK pathway is a canonical route regulating energy homeostasis, by integrating peripheral signals, such as hormones and metabolites, with neuronal networks. Current evidence links hypothalamic AMPK with feeding, brown adipose tissue (BAT) thermogenesis and browning of white adipose tissue (WAT), as well as muscle metabolism, hepatic function and glucose homeostasis. The relevance of these data is interesting from a therapeutic point of view as several agents with potential anti-obesity and/or antidiabetic effects, some currently in clinical use, such as nicotine, metformin and liraglutide are known to act through AMPK, either peripherally or centrally. Furthermore, the orexigenic and weight-gaining effects of the worldwide use of antipsychotic drugs (APDs), such as olanzapine, are also mediated by hypothalamic AMPK. Overall, this evidence makes hypothalamic AMPK signaling an interesting target for the drug development, with its potential for controlling both sides of the energy balance equation, namely feeding and energy expenditure through defined metabolic pathways.

Traveling from the hypothalamus to the adipose tissue: The thermogenic pathway

Brown adipose tissue (BAT) is a specialized tissue critical for non-shivering thermogenesis producing heat through mitochondrial uncoupling; whereas white adipose tissue (WAT) is responsible of energy storage in the form of triglycerides. Another type of fat has been described, the beige adipose tissue; this tissue emerges in existing WAT depots but with thermogenic ability, a phenomenon known as browning. Several peripheral signals relaying information about energy status act in the brain, particularly the hypothalamus, to regulate thermogenesis in BAT and browning of WAT. Different hypothalamic areas have the capacity to regulate the thermogenic process in brown and beige adipocytes through the sympathetic nervous system (SNS). This review discusses important concepts and discoveries about the central control of thermogenesis as a trip that starts in the hypothalamus, and taking the sympathetic roads to reach brown and beige fat to modulate thermogenic functions.

Estradiol effects on hypothalamic AMPK and BAT thermogenesis: A gateway for obesity treatment?

In addition to their prominent roles in the control of reproduction, estrogens are important modulators of energy balance, as evident in conditions of deficiency of estrogens, which are characterized by increased feeding and decreased energy expenditure, leading to obesity. AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) is a ubiquitous cellular energy gauge that is activated under conditions of low energy, increasing energy production and reducing energy wasting. Centrally, the AMPK pathway is a canonical route regulating energy homeostasis, by integrating peripheral signals, such as hormones and metabolites, with neuronal networks. As a result of those actions, hypothalamic AMPK modulates feeding, as well as brown adipose tissue (BAT) thermogenesis and browning of white adipose tissue (WAT). Here, we will review the central actions of estrogens on energy balance, with particular focus on hypothalamic AMPK. The relevance of this interaction is noteworthy, because some agents with known actions on metabolic homeostasis, such as nicotine, metformin, liraglutide, olanzapine and also natural molecules, such as resveratrol and flavonoids, exert their actions by modulating AMPK. This evidence highlights the possibility that hypothalamic AMPK might be a potential target for the treatment of obesity.

Self-administered nicotine differentially impacts body weight gain in obesity-prone and obesity-resistant rats

Obesity and tobacco smoking represent the largest challenges to public health, but the causal relationship between nicotine and obesity is poorly understood. Nicotine suppresses body weight gain, a factor impacting smoking initiation and the failure to quit, particularly among obese smokers. The impact of nicotine on body weight regulation in obesity-prone and obesity-resistant populations consuming densely caloric diets is unknown. In the current experiment, body weight gain of adult male rats maintained on a high energy diet (31.8% kcal from fat) distributed into obesity-prone (OP), obesity-resistant (OR) and an intermediate group, which was placed on standard rodent chow (Chow). These rats were surgically implanted with intravenous catheters and allowed to self-administer nicotine (0 or 60μg/kg/infusion, a standard self-administration dose) in 1-h sessions for 20 consecutive days. Self-administered nicotine significantly suppressed body weight gain but not food intake in OP and Chow rats. Self-administered nicotine had no effect on body weight gain in OR rats. These data suggest that: 1) OR rats are also resistant to nicotine-induced suppression of body weight gain; and 2) nicotine may reduce levels of obesity in a subset of smokers prone to obesity.

Estradiol Regulation of Brown Adipose Tissue Thermogenesis

Physiologically, estrogens carry out a myriad of functions, the most essential being the regulation of the reproductive axis. Currently, it is also dogmatic that estrogens play an important role modulating energy balance and metabolism. In this sense, it is well known that low estrogens levels, occurring due to ovarian insufficiency, in conditions such as menopause or ovariectomy (OVX), are associated with increased food intake and decreased energy expenditure, leading to weight gain and obesity at long term. Concerning energy expenditure, the main effect of estradiol (E2) is on brown adipose tissue (BAT) thermogenesis. Thus, acting through a peripheral or a central action, E2 activates brown fat activity and increases body temperature, which is negatively associated with body weight. Centrally, the hypothalamic AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) mediates the E2 action on BAT thermogenesis. In this chapter, we will summarize E2 regulation of BAT thermogenesis and how this can influence energy balance and metabolism in general.

Reduction of Hypothalamic Endoplasmic Reticulum Stress Activates Browning of White Fat and Ameliorates Obesity

The chaperone GRP78/BiP (glucose-regulated protein 78 kDa/binding immunoglobulin protein) modulates protein folding in reply to cellular insults that lead to endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress. This study investigated the role of hypothalamic GRP78 on energy balance, with particular interest in thermogenesis and browning of white adipose tissue (WAT). For this purpose, we used diet-induced obese rats and rats administered thapsigargin, and by combining metabolic, histologic, physiologic, pharmacologic, thermographic, and molecular techniques, we studied the effect of genetic manipulation of hypothalamic GRP78. Our data showed that rats fed a high-fat diet or that were centrally administered thapsigargin displayed hypothalamic ER stress, whereas genetic overexpression of GRP78 specifically in the ventromedial nucleus of the hypothalamus was sufficient to alleviate ER stress and to revert the obese and metabolic phenotype. Those effects were independent of feeding and leptin but were related to increased thermogenic activation of brown adipose tissue and induction of browning in WAT and could be reversed by antagonism of β3 adrenergic receptors. This evidence indicates that modulation of hypothalamic GRP78 activity may be a potential strategy against obesity and associated comorbidities.

Hypothalamus and thermogenesis: Heating the BAT, browning the WAT

Brown adipose tissue (BAT) has been also considered as the main thermogenic organ responsible of maintenance body temperature through heat production. However, a new type of thermogenic fat has been characterized during the last years, the beige or brite fat, that is developed from white adipose tissue (WAT) in response to different stimuli by a process known as browning. The activities of brown and beige adipocytes ameliorate metabolic disease, including obesity in mice and correlate with leanness in humans. Many genes and pathways that regulate brown and beige adipocyte biology have now been identified, providing a variety of promising therapeutic targets for metabolic disease. The hypothalamus is the main central place orchestrating the outflow signals that drive the sympathetic nerve activity to BAT and WAT, controlling heat production and energy homeostasis. Recent data have revealed new hypothalamic molecular mechanisms, such as hypothalamic AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK), that control both thermogenesis and browning. This review provides an overview of the factors influencing BAT and WAT thermogenesis, with special focus on the integration of peripheral information on hypothalamic circuits controlling thermoregulation.

Contribution of adaptive thermogenesis to the hypothalamic regulation of energy balance

Obesity and its related disorders are among the most pervasive diseases in contemporary societies, and there is an urgent need for new therapies and preventive approaches. Given (i) our poor social capacity to correct unhealthy habits, and (ii) our evolutionarily genetic predisposition to store excess energy as fat, the current environment of caloric surplus makes the treatment of obesity extremely difficult. During the last few decades, an increasing number of methodological approaches have increased our knowledge of the neuroanatomical basis of the control of energy balance. Compelling evidence underlines the role of the hypothalamus as a homeostatic integrator of metabolic information and its ability to adjust energy balance. A greater understanding of the neural basis of the hypothalamic regulation of energy balance might indeed pave the way for new therapeutic targets. In this regard, it has been shown that several important peripheral signals, such as leptin, thyroid hormones, oestrogens and bone morphogenetic protein 8B, converge on common energy sensors, such as AMP-activated protein kinase to modulate sympathetic tone on brown adipose tissue. This knowledge may open new ways to counteract the chronic imbalance underlying obesity. Here, we review the current state of the art on the role of hypothalamus in the regulation of energy balance with particular focus on thermogenesis.

The Natural Occurring Compounds Targeting Endoplasmic Reticulum Stress

ER stress has been implicated in pathophysiological development of many diseases. Persistent overwhelming stimuli trigger ER stress to initiate apoptosis, autophagy, and cell death. IRE1-JNK and eIF2α-CHOP signaling pathways are the two important players of ER stress, which is also modulated by ROS production, calcium disturbance, and inflammatory factors. ER stress has been developed as a novel strategy for diseases management. Recently, a vast of research focuses on the natural occurring compounds targeting ER stress, which results in medical benefits to human diseases. These small reported molecules mainly include polyphenols, alkaloids, and saponins. Many of them have been developed for use in clinical applications. To better understand the pharmacological mechanism of these molecules in ER stress in diseases, efforts have been made to discover and deliver medical merits. In this paper, we will summarize the natural occurring compounds targeting ER stress.

Estradiol and brown fat

Ovarian steroids, such as estradiol (E2), control a vastness of physiological processes, such as puberty, reproduction, growth, development and metabolic rate. In fact, physiological, pathological, pharmacological or genetically-induced estrogen deficiency causes increased appetite and reduced energy expenditure, promoting weight gain and ultimately leading to obesity. Remarkably, estrogen replacement reverts those effects. Interestingly, although a wealth of evidence has shown that E2 can directly modulate peripheral tissues to exert their metabolic actions, novel data gathered in recent years have shown that those effects are mainly central and occur in the hypothalamus. Here, we will review what is known about the actions of E2 on energy homeostasis, with particular focus on brown adipose tissue (BAT) thermogenesis.

Hypothalamic AMPK as a Regulator of Energy Homeostasis

Activated in energy depletion conditions, AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) acts as a cellular energy sensor and regulator in both central nervous system and peripheral organs. Hypothalamic AMPK restores energy balance by promoting feeding behavior to increase energy intake, increasing glucose production, and reducing thermogenesis to decrease energy output. Besides energy state, many hormones have been shown to act in concert with AMPK to mediate their anorexigenic and orexigenic central effects as well as thermogenic influences. Here we explore the factors that affect hypothalamic AMPK activity and give the underlying mechanisms for the role of central AMPK in energy homeostasis together with the physiological effects of hypothalamic AMPK on energy balance restoration.

Hypothalamic AMPK: a canonical regulator of whole-body energy balance

AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) has a major role in the modulation of energy balance. AMPK is activated in conditions of low energy, increasing energy production and reducing energy consumption. The AMPK pathway is a canonical route regulating energy homeostasis by integrating peripheral signals, such as hormones and metabolites, with neuronal networks. Current evidence has implicated AMPK in the hypothalamus and hindbrain with feeding, brown adipose tissue thermogenesis and browning of white adipose tissue, through modulation of the sympathetic nervous system, as well as glucose homeostasis. Interestingly, several potential antiobesity and/or antidiabetic agents, some of which are currently in clinical use such as metformin and liraglutide, exert some of their actions by acting on AMPK. Furthermore, the orexigenic and weight-gain effects of commonly used antipsychotic drugs are also mediated by hypothalamic AMPK. Overall, this evidence suggests that hypothalamic AMPK signalling is an interesting target for drug development, but is this approach feasible? In this Review we discuss the current understanding of hypothalamic AMPK and its role in the central regulation of energy balance and metabolism.

Renoprotective effect of curcumin against the combined oxidative stress of diabetes and nicotine in rats

The progression of diabetic nephropathy (DN) is accelerated by smoking. The current study investigated the ability of curcumin to protect the kidneys against damage from oxidative stress induced by diabetes mellitus (DM) and nicotine (NC). A total of 24 male Wistar rats were divided into four groups of six rats each. DM was induced by a single intraperitoneal injection of streptozotocin 60 mg/kg body weight. DM rats were treated with or without NC in the absence or presence of curcumin for 8 weeks. As compared with the controls, DM rats exhibited reduced serum levels of high density lipoprotein, superoxide dismutase and glutathione peroxidase, and decreased renal mRNA expression levels of synaptopodin, connexin 43 and erythropoietin (EPO), which were further suppressed by NC and restored to normal levels by curcumin treatment. Additionally, DM rats exhibited increases in their lipid profiles (cholesterol, triacylglycerol and phospholipids), oxidative markers (malondialdehyde, γ-glutamyltranspeptidase and nitric oxide), kidney function markers (urea and creatinine) and the mRNA expression levels of vimentin, desmin, SREBP-1, iNOS and TGF-β1. These effects were further enhanced by NC, but counteracted by curcumin treatment. Kidneys from DM rats displayed glomerular hypertrophy, sclerosis and tubulo-interstitial changes represented by tubular lipid deposition, interstitial mononuclear cell infiltration and fibroplasia. Pancreatic islets exhibited cellular vacuolation, morphological irregularity and damaged or reduced in size β-cells. These renal and pancreatic changes became more severe following NC treatment and were ameliorated by curcumin. Therefore, NC-induced DN progression may predominantly operate by increasing oxidative stress, reducing the levels of antioxidants, suppressing EPO levels, and causing perturbations to gap junction and podocyte structure. Curcumin may ameliorate the damaging effects of DM and NC on the kidney through normalization of the mRNA expression levels of several genes important in the progression of DN.

Essential role of UCP1 modulating the central effects of thyroid hormones on energy balance

Objective

Classically, metabolic effects of thyroid hormones (THs) have been considered to be peripherally mediated, i.e. different tissues in the body respond directly to thyroid hormones with an increased metabolism. An alternative view is that the metabolic effects are centrally regulated. We have examined here the degree to which prolonged, centrally infused triiodothyronine (T3) could in itself induce total body metabolic effects and the degree to which brown adipose tissue (BAT) thermogenesis was essential for such effects, by examining uncoupling protein 1 (UCP1) KO mice.

Methods

Wildtype and UPC1 KO mice were centrally-treated with T3 by using minipumps. Metabolic measurements were analyzed by indirect calorimetry and expression analysis by RT-PCR or western blot. BAT morphology and histology were studied by immunohistochemistry.

Results

We found that central T3-treatment led to reduced levels of hypothalamic AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) and elevated body temperature (0.7 °C). UCP1 was essential for the T3-induced increased rate of energy expenditure, which was only observable at thermoneutrality and notably only during the active phase, for the increased body weight loss, for the increased hypothalamic levels of neuropeptide Y (NPY) and agouti-related peptide (AgRP) and for the increased food intake induced by central T3-treatment. Prolonged central T3-treatment also led to recruitment of BAT and britening/beiging (“browning”) of inguinal white adipose tissue (iWAT).

Conclusions

We conclude that UCP1 is essential for mediation of the central effects of thyroid hormones on energy balance, and we suggest that similar UCP1-dependent effects may underlie central energy balance effects of other agents.

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Central thyroid hormone (TH) increases brown adipose tissue (BAT) thermogenesis.

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Central TH increases oxygen consumption and energy expenditure.

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Central TH increases food intake.

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Central TH promotes britening/beiging of white adipose tissue (WAT).

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All these metabolic effects of central TH are lost in UCP1 knockout mice.

Possible role of afferent autonomic signals in abdominal organs in anorexic and cardiovascular responses to nicotine injection in rats

Smoking generally causes an increase in nicotine levels in the blood, affecting the brain components, such as the hypothalamus (feeding-related area) or the brain stem (cardiovascular control area). In terms of nicotine transmission to the brain, a new insight that the afferent vagal nerve in the liver is important for sensing increased nicotine levels in the blood and informing the brain was reported in an experiment with rats. However, it has not been clarified whether the afferent autonomic nerve system is implicated in feeding and cardiovascular responses to nicotine. Here, we examined the possible role of afferent autonomic nerve transmission in rats in regulating feeding behavior and cardiovascular functions by nicotine. An intravenous injection of nicotine dose dependently increased the blood pressure (BP) in urethane-anesthetized rats; high nicotine doses also led to an increase in BP in conscious rats. Further, an intravenous injection of nicotine for 3 days reduced food intake and body weight gain in rats. The weight-reducing action of intravenous nicotine was abolished by blocking the afferent sympathetic signals in the abdominal organs, but not the vagal nerve signals. Moreover, the hypertensive action of nicotine was not abolished either by afferent sympathectomy or by vagotomy. Thus, these data suggest that nicotine injected into the vein acts on the afferent sympathetic nerve in the abdominal organs and transmits signals to the brain for reducing body weight, but not for suppressing appetite or increasing BP.

Nicotine Induces Cardiomyocyte Hypertrophy Through TRPC3-Mediated Ca2+/NFAT Signalling Pathway

BACKGROUND

Nicotine is thought to be an important risk factor for the development of cardiovascular diseases. However, the effects of nicotine on cardiomyocyte hypertrophy are poorly understood. The present study was designed to explore the role of nicotine in cardiomyocyte hypertrophy and its underlying mechanism.

METHODS

We used primary cardiomyocytes isolated from Wistar rats to examine the effects of nicotine on intracellular Ca²⁺ mobilization and hypertrophy determined by immunofluorescence, quantitative polymerase chain reaction, and western blot analysis. A luciferase reporter assay was used to examine the activity of NFAT signalling.

RESULTS

We found that nicotine caused cardiomyocyte hypertrophy, which was accompanied by increased intracellular Ca²⁺. Nicotine-enhanced intracellular Ca²⁺ concentration ([Ca²⁺]_i) was significantly abolished by store-operated Ca²⁺ entry (SOCE) and TRPC inhibitors. Knockdown of TRPC3 significantly decreased nicotine-induced SOCE and hypertrophy. Moreover, calcineurin-nuclear factor of activated T cells (NFAT) is involved in TRPC3-mediated Ca²⁺ signalling and cardiomyocyte hypertrophy. Notably, upregulation of TRPC3 by nicotine requires TRPC3-mediated Ca²⁺ influx and calcineurin-NFAT signalling activation.

CONCLUSIONS

Our findings demonstrate that the prohypertrophic effect of nicotine on cardiomyocytes is dependent on enhanced TRPC3 expression through a calcium-dependent regulatory loop, which could become a potential target for prevention and treatment of cardiac hypertrophy.

Orexins (hypocretins) and energy balance: More than feeding

Initially implicated in the regulation of feeding, orexins/hypocretins are now acknowledged to play a major role in the control of a wide variety of biological processes, such as sleep, energy expenditure, pain, cardiovascular function and neuroendocrine regulation, a feature that makes them one of the most pleiotropic families of hypothalamic neuropeptides. While the orexigenic effect of orexins is well described, their central effects on energy expenditure and particularly on brown adipose tissue (BAT) thermogenesis are not totally unraveled. Better understanding of these actions and their possible interrelationship with other hypothalamic systems controlling thermogenesis, such as AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) and endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress, will help to clarify the exact role and pathophysiological relevance of these neuropeptides have on energy balance.

Hypothalamic control of brown adipose tissue thermogenesis

It has long been known, in large part from animal studies, that the control of brown adipose tissue (BAT) thermogenesis is insured by the central nervous system (CNS), which integrates several stimuli in order to control BAT activation through the sympathetic nervous system (SNS). SNS-mediated BAT activity is governed by diverse neurons found in brain structures involved in homeostatic regulations and whose activity is modulated by various factors including oscillations of energy fluxes. The characterization of these neurons has always represented a challenging issue. The available literature suggests that the neuronal circuits controlling BAT thermogenesis are largely part of an autonomic circuitry involving the hypothalamus, brainstem and the SNS efferent neurons. In the present review, we recapitulate the latest progresses in regards to the hypothalamic regulation of BAT metabolism. We briefly addressed the role of the thermoregulatory pathway and its interactions with the energy balance systems in the control of thermogenesis. We also reviewed the involvement of the brain melanocortin and endocannabinoid systems as well as the emerging role of steroidogenic factor 1 (SF1) neurons in BAT thermogenesis. Finally, we examined the link existing between these systems and the homeostatic factors that modulate their activities.

Hypothalamic-autonomic control of energy homeostasis

Regulation of energy homeostasis is tightly controlled by the central nervous system (CNS). Several key areas such as the hypothalamus and brainstem receive and integrate signals conveying energy status from the periphery, such as leptin, thyroid hormones, and insulin, ultimately leading to modulation of food intake, energy expenditure (EE), and peripheral metabolism. The autonomic nervous system (ANS) plays a key role in the response to such signals, innervating peripheral metabolic tissues, including brown and white adipose tissue (BAT and WAT), liver, pancreas, and skeletal muscle. The ANS consists of two parts, the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems (SNS and PSNS). The SNS regulates BAT thermogenesis and EE, controlled by central areas such as the preoptic area (POA) and the ventromedial, dorsomedial, and arcuate hypothalamic nuclei (VMH, DMH, and ARC). The SNS also regulates lipid metabolism in WAT, controlled by the lateral hypothalamic area (LHA), VMH, and ARC. Control of hepatic glucose production and pancreatic insulin secretion also involves the LHA, VMH, and ARC as well as the dorsal vagal complex (DVC), via splanchnic sympathetic and the vagal parasympathetic nerves. Muscle glucose uptake is also controlled by the SNS via hypothalamic nuclei such as the VMH. There is recent evidence of novel pathways connecting the CNS and ANS. These include the hypothalamic AMP-activated protein kinase-SNS-BAT axis which has been demonstrated to be a key modulator of thermogenesis. In this review, we summarize current knowledge of the role of the ANS in the modulation of energy balance.

Come to Where Insulin Resistance Is, Come to AMPK Country

The link between smoking and insulin resistance, despite weight loss, is well established; however, the underlying mechanisms remain elusive. A recent article published in Nature Medicine by Wu et al. (2015) reports that nicotine, the main bioactive component of tobacco smoke, activates AMPKα2 in adipocytes, leading to impaired insulin sensitivity.

Activation of AMPKα2 in adipocytes is essential for nicotine-induced insulin resistance in vivo

Cigarette smoking promotes body weight reduction in humans while paradoxically also promoting insulin resistance (IR) and hyperinsulinemia. However, the mechanisms behind these effects are unclear. Here we show that nicotine, a major constituent of cigarette smoke, selectively activates AMP-activated protein kinase α2 (AMPKα2) in adipocytes, which in turn phosphorylates MAP kinase phosphatase-1 (MKP1) at serine 334, initiating its proteasome-dependent degradation. The nicotine-dependent reduction of MKP1 induces the aberrant activation of both p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase and c-Jun N-terminal kinase, leading to increased phosphorylation of insulin receptor substrate 1 (IRS1) at serine 307. Phosphorylation of IRS1 leads to its degradation, protein kinase B inhibition, and the loss of insulin-mediated inhibition of lipolysis. Consequently, nicotine increases lipolysis, which results in body weight reduction, but this increase also elevates the levels of circulating free fatty acids and thus causes IR in insulin-sensitive tissues. These results establish AMPKα2 as an essential mediator of nicotine-induced whole-body IR in spite of reductions in adiposity.

The brain and brown fat

Brown adipose tissue (BAT) is a specialized organ responsible for thermogenesis, a process required for maintaining body temperature. BAT is regulated by the sympathetic nervous system (SNS), which activates lipolysis and mitochondrial uncoupling in brown adipocytes. For many years, BAT was considered to be important only in small mammals and newborn humans, but recent data have shown that BAT is also functional in adult humans. On the basis of this evidence, extensive research has been focused on BAT function, where new molecules, such as irisin and bone morphogenetic proteins, particularly BMP7 and BMP8B, as well as novel central factors and new regulatory mechanisms, such as orexins and the canonical ventomedial nucleus of the hypothalamus (VMH) AMP- activated protein kinase (AMPK)-SNS-BAT axis, have been discovered and emerged as potential drug targets to combat obesity. In this review we provide an overview of the complex central regulation of BAT and how different neuronal cell populations co-ordinately work to maintain energy homeostasis.

Pregnancy induces resistance to the anorectic effect of hypothalamic malonyl-CoA and the thermogenic effect of hypothalamic AMPK inhibition in female rats

During gestation, hyperphagia is necessary to cope with the metabolic demands of embryonic development. There were three main aims of this study: Firstly, to investigate the effect of pregnancy on hypothalamic fatty acid metabolism, a key pathway for the regulation of energy balance; secondly, to study whether pregnancy induces resistance to the anorectic effect of fatty acid synthase (FAS) inhibition and accumulation of malonyl-coenzyme A (CoA) in the hypothalamus; and, thirdly, to study whether changes in hypothalamic AMPK signaling are associated with brown adipose tissue (BAT) thermogenesis during pregnancy. Our data suggest that in pregnant rats, the hypothalamic fatty acid pathway shows an overall state that should lead to anorexia and elevated BAT thermogenesis: decreased activities of AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK), FAS, and carnitine palmitoyltransferase 1, coupled with increased acetyl-CoA carboxylase function with subsequent elevation of malonyl-CoA levels. This profile seems dependent of estradiol levels but not prolactin or progesterone. Despite the apparent anorexic and thermogenic signaling in the hypothalamus, pregnant rats remain hyperphagic and display reduced temperature and BAT function. Actually, pregnant rats develop resistance to the anorectic effects of central FAS inhibition, which is associated with a reduction of proopiomelanocortin (POMC) expression and its transcription factors phospho-signal transducer and activator of transcription 3, and phospho-forkhead box O1. This evidence demonstrates that pregnancy induces a state of resistance to the anorectic and thermogenic actions of hypothalamic cellular signals of energy surplus, which, in parallel to the already known refractoriness to leptin effects, likely contributes to gestational hyperphagia and adiposity.

Central ceramide-induced hypothalamic lipotoxicity and ER stress regulate energy balance

Hypothalamic endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress is a key mechanism leading to obesity. Here, we demonstrate that ceramides induce lipotoxicity and hypothalamic ER stress, leading to sympathetic inhibition, reduced brown adipose tissue (BAT) thermogenesis, and weight gain. Genetic overexpression of the chaperone GRP78/BiP (glucose-regulated protein 78 kDa/binding immunoglobulin protein) in the ventromedial nucleus of the hypothalamus (VMH) abolishes ceramide action by reducing hypothalamic ER stress and increasing BAT thermogenesis, which leads to weight loss and improved glucose homeostasis. The pathophysiological relevance of this mechanism is demonstrated in obese Zucker rats, which show increased hypothalamic ceramide levels and ER stress. Overexpression of GRP78 in the VMH of these animals reduced body weight by increasing BAT thermogenesis as well as decreasing leptin and insulin resistance and hepatic steatosis. Overall, these data identify a triangulated signaling network involving central ceramides, hypothalamic lipotoxicity/ER stress, and BAT thermogenesis as a pathophysiological mechanism of obesity.

Hypothalamic effects of thyroid hormones on metabolism

Over the past few decades, obesity and its related metabolic disorders have increased at an epidemic rate in the developed and developing world. New signals and factors involved in the modulation of energy balance and metabolism are continuously being discovered, providing potential novel drug targets for the treatment of metabolic disease. A parallel strategy is to better understand how hormonal signals, with an already established role in energy metabolism, work, and how manipulation of the pathways involved may lead to amelioration of metabolic dysfunction. The thyroid hormones belong to the latter category, with dysregulation of the thyroid axis leading to marked alterations in energy balance. The potential of thyroid hormones in the treatment of obesity has been known for decades, but their therapeutic use has been hampered because of side-effects. Data gleaned over the past few years, however, have uncovered new features at the mechanisms of action involved in thyroid hormones. Sophisticated neurobiological approaches have allowed the identification of specific energy sensors, such as AMP-activated protein kinase and mechanistic target of rapamycin, acting in specific groups of hypothalamic neurons, mediating many of the effects of thyroid hormones on food intake, energy expenditure, glucose, lipid metabolism, and cardiovascular function. More extensive knowledge about these molecular mechanisms will be of great relevance for the treatment of obesity and metabolic syndrome.

Nicotinic acetylcholine receptors in glucose homeostasis: the acute hyperglycemic and chronic insulin-sensitive effects of nicotine suggest dual opposing roles of the receptors in male mice

Cigarette smoking causes insulin resistance. However, nicotine induces anti-inflammation and improves glucose tolerance in insulin-resistant animal models. Here, we determined the effects of nicotine on glucose metabolism in insulin-sensitive C57BL/J6 mice. Acute nicotine administration (30 min) caused fasting hyperglycemia and lowered insulin sensitivity acutely, which depended on the activation of nicotinic-acetylcholine receptors (nAChRs) and correlated with increased catecholamine secretion, nitric oxide (NO) production, and glycogenolysis. Chlorisondamine, an inhibitor of nAChRs, reduced acute nicotine-induced hyperglycemia. qRT-PCR analysis revealed that the liver and muscle express predominantly β4 > α10 > α3 > α7 and β4 > α10 > β1 > α1 mRNA for nAChR subunits respectively, whereas the adrenal gland expresses β4 > α3 > α7 > α10 mRNA. Chronic nicotine treatment significantly suppressed expression of α3-nAChR (predominant peripheral α-subunit) in liver. Whereas acute nicotine treatment raised plasma norepinephrine (NE) and epinephrine (Epi) levels, chronic nicotine exposure raised only Epi. Acute nicotine treatment raised both basal and glucose-stimulated insulin secretion (GSIS). After chronic nicotine treatment, basal insulin level was elevated, but GSIS after acute saline or nicotine treatment was blunted. Chronic nicotine exposure caused an increased buildup of NO in plasma and liver, leading to decreased glycogen storage, along with a concomitant suppression of Pepck and G6Pase mRNA, thus preventing hyperglycemia. The insulin-sensitizing effect of chronic nicotine was independent of weight loss. Chronic nicotine treatment enhanced PI-3-kinase activities and increased Akt and glycogen synthase kinase (GSK)-3β phosphorylation in an nAChR-dependent manner coupled with decreased cAMP response element-binding protein (CREB) phosphorylation. The latter effects caused suppression of Pepck and G6Pase gene expression. Thus, nicotine causes both insulin resistance and insulin sensitivity depending on the duration of the treatment.