Changes in plasma glucagon levels to stressful environmental temperatures

Physiological and molecular mechanisms of cold-induced improvements in glucose homeostasis in humans beyond brown adipose tissue

Exposure to low ambient temperatures has previously been demonstrated to markedly improve glucose homeostasis in both rodents and humans. Although the brown adipose tissue is key in mediating these beneficial effects in rodents, its contribution appears more limited in humans. Hence, the exact tissues and underlying mechanisms that mediate cold-induced improvements in glucose homeostasis in humans remain to be fully established. In this review, we evaluated the response of the main organs involved in glucose metabolism (i.e. pancreas, liver, (white) adipose tissue, and skeletal muscle) to cold exposure and discuss their potential contribution to cold-induced improvements in glucose homeostasis in humans. We here show that cold exposure has widespread effects on metabolic organs involved in glucose regulation. Nevertheless, cold-induced improvements in glucose homeostasis appear primarily mediated via adaptations within the skeletal muscle and (presumably) white adipose tissue. Since the underlying mechanisms remain elusive, future studies should be aimed at pinpointing the exact physiological and molecular mechanisms involved in humans. Nonetheless, cold exposure holds great promise as a novel, additive lifestyle approach to improve glucose homeostasis in insulin resistant individuals. Parts of this graphical abstract were created using (modified) images from Servier Medical Art, licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported License. TG = thermogenesis, TAG = triacylglycerol, FFA = free fatty acid, SLN = sarcolipin, UCP3 = uncoupling protein 3, β2-AR = beta-2 adrenergic receptor, SNS = sympathetic nervous system.

Chemical Compounds and Ambient Factors Affecting Pancreatic Alpha-Cells Mass and Function: What Evidence?

The exposure to different substances present in the environment can affect the ability of the human body to maintain glucose homeostasis. Some review studies summarized the current evidence about the relationships between environment and insulin resistance or beta-cell dysfunction. Instead, no reviews focused on the relationships between the environment and the alpha cell, although in recent years clear indications have emerged for the pivotal role of the alpha cell in glucose regulation. Thus, the aim of this review was to analyze the studies about the effects of chemical, biological, and physical environmental factors on the alpha cell. Notably, we found studies focusing on the effects of different categories of compounds, including air pollutants, compounds of known toxicity present in common objects, pharmacological agents, and compounds possibly present in food, plus studies on the effects of physical factors (mainly heat exposure). However, the overall number of relevant studies was limited, especially when compared to studies related to the environment and insulin sensitivity or beta-cell function. In our opinion, this was likely due to the underestimation of the alpha-cell role in glucose homeostasis, but since such a role has recently emerged with increasing strength, we expect several new studies about the environment and alpha-cell in the near future.

Physiological, Immune Response, Antioxidant Capacity and Lipid Metabolism Changes in Grazing Sheep during the Cold Season

Mongolian sheep are characteristically cold-tolerant. However, their cold adaptive processes, such as the physiological feedback adjustments that occur during the cold season, remain unexplored. Therefore, the present study aimed to evaluate the physiological adaptations of Mongolian sheep in cold plateau environments. A comparative analysis of the serum biochemical parameters, immune response, antioxidant capacity, and glucose and lipid metabolism of grazing Mongolian sheep in the cold and warm seasons was conducted. The results showed that in the cold season, the glucose and lipid metabolism and thermogenesis of the grazing Mongolian sheep were notably enhanced. Moreover, the immune responses were stimulated by increased levels of cytokines, such as IL-2, IL-1β, and IL-6, during the cold season. However, the antioxidant defense system was damaged; this damage was mainly characterized by decreased activity of antioxidant enzymes and an increased level of MDA during the cold season. Overall, glucose metabolism, lipid metabolism, thermogenesis, and immune responses were stimulated to meet the requirements of organismal metabolic regulation to enable grazing Mongolian sheep to physiologically adapt to cold climatic conditions.

Cold-hearted: A case for cold stress in cancer risk

A negative correlation exists between environmental temperature and cancer risk based on both epidemiological and statistical analyses. Previously, cold stress was reported to be an effective cause of tumorigenesis. Several studies have demonstrated that cold temperature serves as a potential risk factor in cancer development. Most recently, a link was demonstrated between the effects of extreme cold climate on cancer incidence, pinpointing its impact on tumour suppressor genes by causing mutation. The underlying mechanism behind cold stress and its association with tumorigenesis is not well understood. Hence, this review intends to shed light on the role of associated factors, genetic and/or non-genetic, which are modulated by cold temperature, and eventually influence tumorigenic potential. While scrutinizing the effect of cold exposure on the body, the expression of certain genes, e.g. uncoupled proteins and heat-shock proteins, were elevated. Biological chemicals such as norepinephrine, thyroxine, and cholesterol were also elevated. Brown adipose tissue, which plays an essential role in thermogenesis, displayed enhanced activity upon cold exposure. Adaptive measures are utilized by the body to tolerate the cold, and in doing so, invites both epigenetic and genetic changes. Unknowingly, these adaptive strategies give rise to a lethal outcome i.e., genesis of cancer. Concisely, this review attempts to draw a link between cold stress, genetic and epigenetic changes, and tumorigenesis and aspires to ascertain the mechanism behind cold temperature-mediated cancer risk.

Involvement of Glucagon in Preventive Effect of Menthol Against High Fat Diet Induced Obesity in Mice

Glucagon mediated mechanisms have been shown to play clinically significant role in energy expenditure. The present study was designed to understand whether pharmacological mimicking of cold using menthol (TRPM8 modulator) can induce glucagon-mediated energy expenditure to prevent weight gain and related complications. Acute oral and topical administration of TRPM8 agonists (menthol and icilin) increased serum glucagon concentration which was prevented by pre-treatment with AMTB, a TRPM8 blocker. Chronic administration of menthol (50 and 100 mg/kg/day for 12 weeks) to HFD fed animals prevented weight gain, insulin resistance, adipose tissue hypertrophy and triacylglycerol deposition in liver. These effects were not restricted to oral administration, but also observed upon the topical application of menthol (10% w/v). The metabolic alterations caused by menthol in liver and adipose tissue mirrored the known effects of glucagon, such as increased glycogenolysis and gluconeogenesis in the liver, and enhanced thermogenic activity of white and brown adipose tissue. Correlation analysis suggests a strong correlation between glucagon dependent changes and energy expenditure markers. Interestingly, in-vitro treatment of the serum of menthol treated mice increased energy expenditure markers in mature 3T3L1 adipocytes, which was prevented in the presence of non-competitive glucagon receptor antagonist, L-168,049, indicating that menthol-induced increase in serum glucagon is responsible for increase in energy expenditure phenotype. In conclusion, the present work provides evidence that glucagon plays an important role in the preventive effect of menthol against HFD-induced weight gain and related complications.

A 90-day OECD TG 413 rat inhalation study with systems toxicology endpoints demonstrates reduced exposure effects of the aerosol from the carbon heated tobacco product version 1.2 (CHTP1.2) compared with cigarette smoke. II. Systems toxicology assessment

Modified risk tobacco products (MRTPs) have the potential to reduce smoking-related health risks. The Carbon Heated Tobacco Product 1.2 (CHTP1.2) is a potential MRTP that uses a pressed carbon heat source to generate an aerosol by heating tobacco. Here, we report the results from the systems toxicology arm of a 90-day rat inhalation study (OECD test guideline 413) to assess the effects of CHTP1.2 aerosol compared with cigarette smoke (CS). Transcriptomics, proteomics, and lipidomics analyses complemented the standard endpoints. In the respiratory nasal epithelium, CS induced an adaptive tissue and inflammatory response, which was much weaker after CHTP1.2 aerosol exposure, mostly limited to the highest CHTP1.2 concentration (at twice the 3R4F CS concentration: 50 vs. 23 μg nicotine/L), in female rats. In the lungs, the effects of CS exposure included inflammatory and cellular stress responses, which were absent or much lower after CHTP1.2 aerosol exposure. Outside of the respiratory tract, CS and CHTP1.2 aerosol induced effects that were previously associated with exposure to any nicotine-containing aerosol, e.g., lower lipid concentrations in serum. Overall, this systems toxicology analysis complements and confirms the results from classical toxicological endpoints and further suggests potentially reduced respiratory health risks of CHTP1.2.

Toxicity of the main electronic cigarette components, propylene glycol, glycerin, and nicotine, in Sprague-Dawley rats in a 90-day OECD inhalation study complemented by molecular endpoints

While the toxicity of the main constituents of electronic cigarette (ECIG) liquids, nicotine, propylene glycol (PG), and vegetable glycerin (VG), has been assessed individually in separate studies, limited data on the inhalation toxicity of them is available when in mixtures. In this 90-day subchronic inhalation study, Sprague-Dawley rats were nose-only exposed to filtered air, nebulized vehicle (saline), or three concentrations of PG/VG mixtures, with and without nicotine. Standard toxicological endpoints were complemented by molecular analyses using transcriptomics, proteomics, and lipidomics. Compared with vehicle exposure, the PG/VG aerosols showed only very limited biological effects with no signs of toxicity. Addition of nicotine to the PG/VG aerosols resulted in effects in line with nicotine effects observed in previous studies, including up-regulation of xenobiotic enzymes (Cyp1a1/Fmo3) in the lung and metabolic effects, such as reduced serum lipid concentrations and expression changes of hepatic metabolic enzymes. No toxicologically relevant effects of PG/VG aerosols (up to 1.520  mg PG/L + 1.890 mg VG/L) were observed, and no adverse effects for PG/VG/nicotine were observed up to 438/544/6.6 mg/kg/day. This study demonstrates how complementary systems toxicology analyses can reveal, even in the absence of observable adverse effects, subtoxic and adaptive responses to pharmacologically active compounds such as nicotine.

Non-Mammalian Vertebrates: Distinct Models to Assess the Role of Ion Gradients in Energy Expenditure

Animals store metabolic energy as electrochemical gradients. At least 50% of mammalian energy is expended to maintain electrochemical gradients across the inner mitochondrial membrane (H⁺), the sarcoplasmic reticulum (Ca⁺⁺), and the plasma membrane (Na⁺/K⁺). The potential energy of these gradients can be used to perform work (e.g., transport molecules, stimulate contraction, and release hormones) or can be released as heat. Because ectothermic species adapt their body temperature to the environment, they are not constrained by energetic demands that are required to maintain a constant body temperature. In fact, ectothermic species expend seven to eight times less energy than similarly sized homeotherms. Accordingly, ectotherms adopt low metabolic rates to survive cold, hypoxia, and extreme bouts of fasting that would result in energy wasting, lactic acidosis and apoptosis, or starvation in homeotherms, respectively. Ectotherms have also evolved unique applications of ion gradients to allow for localized endothermy. Endothermic avian species, which lack brown adipose tissue, have been integral in assessing the role of H⁺ and Ca⁺⁺ cycling in skeletal muscle thermogenesis. Accordingly, the diversity of non-mammalian vertebrate species allows them to serve as unique models to better understand the role of ion gradients in heat production, metabolic flux, and adaptation to stressors, including obesity, starvation, cold, and hypoxia.

Apparent thermogenic effect of injected glucagon is not due to a direct effect on brown fat cells

To examine the significance of brown adipose tissue for the thermogenic response to glucagon, we injected glucagon intraperitoneally into rats (that have glucagon-sensitive brown fat cells) and into hamsters (that have glucagon-insensitive brown fat cells). Although a thermogenic response to glucagon injection was apparently observed in rats, this response was not augmented by cold acclimation and was not dose dependent. Similar observations were made in hamsters. The thermogenic response could be fully blocked by prior injection of the beta-adrenergic blocker propranolol. Thus no direct thermogenic response to injected glucagon could be demonstrated, and the thermogenic response observed was fully due to vehicle injection. However, glucagon injection was able to unmask mitochondrial [3H]GDP binding. As expected, isolated brown fat cells from rats and mice responded thermogenically to glucagon but brown fat cells from hamsters were unresponsive. The EC50 of the rat brown fat cells was high (5 nM); these cells also responded to secretin, with an EC50 of 22 nM. It was concluded that, in contrast to earlier observations, no thermogenic response to injected glucagon could be observed; this may be related to differences in glucagon preparations. Brown fat cells from certain species are, however, glucagon sensitive. It is uncertain whether glucagon is the endogenous agonist for these receptors, but the presence of the glucagon-responsive receptor indicates alternative means to norepinephrine for stimulation of brown adipose tissue thermogenesis and, probably, of recruitment.

Alterations in adipocyte response to lipolytic hormones during cold acclimation

The effects of cold exposure (7 days, 5 degrees C) and cold acclimation (21 days, 5 degrees C) on the regulation of lipolysis were investigated in adipocytes isolated from epididymal fat pads of rats. Catecholamines stimulated lipolysis in an affinity sequence typical of the beta 1-adrenoceptor subtype: one-half maximum velocity (1/2 Vmax) isoproterenol (35 nM) much greater than 1/2 Vmax norepinephrine (150 nM) approximately 1/2 Vmax epinephrine (200 nM). Cold exposure markedly decreased the sensitivity (1/2 Vmax) and the responsiveness (Vmax) of the adipocytes to the lipolytic action of catecholamines. Addition of adenosine deaminase to fat cells isolated from cold-exposed rats did not normalize the lipolytic activity, suggesting that extracellular adenosine was not responsible for the obtunded lipolysis. This effect of cold exposure was transient as the lipolytic response to catecholamines was normal in fully cold-acclimated animals. Remarkably, the responsiveness of adipocytes to the lipolytic action of glucagon (200 nM) and adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH, 1 microM) progressively increased during cold acclimation. Adipocyte lipolytic response to dibutyryl adenosine 3',5'-cyclic monophosphate (cAMP) and theophylline was normal in cold-exposed rats, indicating that the lipolytic defect resides at an early step in the lipolytic cascade (pre-cAMP). On the other hand, the antilipolytic effect of insulin on norepinephrine-induced lipolysis significantly decreased during cold acclimation, particularly at physiological levels of insulin (nanomolar level). These results demonstrate that the transient decrease in the lipolytic action of catecholamines observed during cold acclimation is compensated by 1) an increased responsiveness of adipocytes to glucagon and ACTH and 2) by a decreased effectiveness of insulin to induce antilipolysis.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Thermoregulatory behaviour induced by intrathecal injection of substance P in the rat

A climatic chamber at an ambient temperature (Ta) of 20 and 30 degrees C was used to examine the effect on thermoregulation in the rat of substance P (SP) injected into the lumbar subarachnoid space via a chronic indwelling catheter. In the first series of experiments, the rats had no access to the lever in the climatic chamber. At Ta of 20 degrees C, intrathecal (IT) injections of SP or saline had no effect on body temperature. In the second series of experiments, the rats had access to the lever which actuated a fan that drew cool outside air into the chamber. At Ta 20 and 30 degrees C, IT injection of SP stimulated the activation of bar-pressing to obtain air for cooling. This behaviour was more evident when Ta was 30 degrees C. Under similar conditions, IT injection of saline did not activate bar-pressing. These findings suggest that spinal cord SP receptors may be involved in the control of body temperature.

Differential effects of noradrenaline and glucagon on lipolysis and fatty-acid utilization in brown adipose tissue

The relative effects of noradrenaline (300 pM-3 microM) and glucagon (30 pM-300 nM) upon lipolysis and fatty acid utilization rates in brown adipose tissue from warm- (WA) and cold-acclimated (CA) rats, were: lipolytic sensitivity and responsiveness to the agonists were reduced in CA tissue; in CA tissue, at 300 pM, glucagon promoted fatty acid utilization more than noradrenaline; glucagon at 300 pM increased fatty acid utilization in WA tissue. The data suggest that glucagon has a physiological role in brown adipose tissue, modulating events subsequent to NA- and glucagon-induced lipolysis, promoting fatty acid utilization.

Adaptive changes in insulin and glucagon secretion during cold acclimation in the rat

Arginine-stimulated insulin and glucagon outputs from isolated perfused pancreata of warm-acclimated and 2-, 4-, and 6-wk cold-acclimated rats (4 degrees C) were determined to assess whether observed changes in these parameters were a result of cold exposure per se or a part of the adaptive process of cold acclimation. Progressive and sequential changes were seen in both insulin and glucagon outputs. At 2 wk cold acclimation, glucagon rose and insulin output tended to fall, at 4 wk, glucagon output remained elevated and insulin output was further reduced, and at 6 wk, glucagon output had returned to control levels, whereas insulin output was substantially further reduced. These changes resulted in reduction of the insulin-to-glucagon molar ratio of the total arginine-induced output from 7.27 +/- 1.76 (SE) in the warm acclimate to 2.31 +/- 0.79 (SE) at 2 wk, 1.42 +/- 0.29 (SE) at 4 wk, and 1.26 +/- 0.21 (SE) at 6 wk cold acclimation. The data do not provide in vitro support for the hypothesis that changes in pancreatic hormone secretion in vivo are a consequence of cold exposure and not cold acclimation.

Cross adaption between stress and cold in rats

Three-hour immobilization stress was imposed on male adult rats of Wistar strain by restraining them on a board 6 days a week for 1-8 weeks. The stressed rats showed less body weight gain during the experiment compared to the controls. These stressed animals manifested an improved cold tolerance as shown by no significant fall in colonic temperature in the cold at -5 degrees C for 300 min during the experimental period, while the colonic temperature of the controls fell progressively. Nonshivering thermogenesis as assessed by noradrenaline-induced increase in oxygen consumption was significantly potentiated in the stressed rats. The weight and protein content of the intercapsular brown adipose tissue (BAT) increased and BAT mitochondria were more packed in the stressed rats. Plasma insulin, insulin/glucagon molar ratio and thyroxine levels were lowered in the stressed rats, while the plasma triiodothyronine level remained unchanged. Removal of interscapular BAT led to a loss of improved cold tolerance and a significant reduction of nonshivering thermogenesis in the stressed rats. These results indicate that repetitive stress may induce cross adaptation between stress and cold through an enhanced capacity of nonshivering thermogenesis mediated, at least in part, via stimulation of BAT function.

Effects of adrenal demedullation combined with chemical sympathectomy on cold-induced responses of endocrine pancreas in rats

Adrenal demedullation combined with chemical sympathectomy with 6-hydroxydopamine (ACS) lowered plasma glucagon and insulin levels in rats. Acute cold exposure increased plasma glucagon in both ACS and control rats, while it increased plasma insulin only in ACS rats. ACS rats responded to cold with a smaller increase in plasma glycerol and a more pronounced elevation of plasma free fatty acids.