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Biomedical subjects

F Assimacopoulos-Jeannet

Publications and source records attributed to F Assimacopoulos-Jeannet.

At least 73 records · Page 4Linked to original sources
PubMed1983

Brown adipose tissue metabolism in streptozotocin-diabetic rats.

Defects of both diet-induced thermogenesis and cold tolerance have been reported for streptozotocin-diabetic rats. Since brown adipose tissue (BAT) is a major effector of both diet- and cold-induced thermogenesis in the rat, the possible cause of these defects was investigated by comparing BAT metabolism under basal conditions and during activation by nerve stimulation, norepinephrine (NE), or octanoate addition in both streptozotocin-diabetic rats and in controls. The following metabolic indices were measured in rat interscapular BAT (IBAT): 1) tissue composition, 2) heat production rate as measured by direct microcalorimetry, 3) redox state of flavoproteins linked to the acyl-coenzyme A dehydrogenase pathway as measured by reflection spectrometry, 4) redox state of NAD(P) as measured by surface-emitted fluorescence, and 5) fatty acid activation and beta-oxidation activities in IBAT homogenate. In streptozotocin-diabetic rats, IBAT was atrophied (DNA content unmodified, protein and lipid content decreased). The basal and NE-stimulated total heat production rates showed a 75% and 56% decrease, respectively. The specific activity of fatty acid beta-oxidation as measured by flavoprotein redox state or enzymatically was decreased by 52% and 59%, respectively. The basal redox level of NAD(P) was about 3 times higher than in the controls and NE stimulation resulted in oxidation in contrast to the reduction observed in control tissues. These results show that the metabolic capacity of IBAT from streptozotocin-diabetic rats is decreased and further suggest that the reduced capacity for beta-oxidation contributes significantly to the metabolic alteration.

Adipose Tissue, Brown↗
PubMed1982

Parallel increases in rates of fatty acid synthesis and in pyruvate dehydrogenase activity in isolated rat hepatocytes incubated with insulin.

The effect of insulin on the activity of pyruvate dehydrogenase is studied in isolated hepatocytes from fed rats. Insulin increases the 'initial' activity of pyruvate dehydrogenase by 30% without modifying the total activity of the enzyme. The maximal increase is reached 3 min after addition of the hormone and is dose-dependent. Insulin also increases the rate of fatty acid synthesis.

Aminoisobutyric Acids↗
PubMed1982

Alterations of brown adipose tissue in genetically obese (ob/ob) mice. I. Demonstration of loss of metabolic response to nerve stimulation and catecholamines and its partial recovery after fasting or cold adaptation.

Metabolic responses to electrical nerve stimulation or norepinephrine of isolated interscapular brown adipose tissue (BAT) from lean and ob/ob mice were studied using either continuous monitoring of the NAD(P)H/NAD(P) redox state or direct microcalorimetry. The responses to these sympathetic stimuli were not significantly different from zero in BAT of ob/ob mice kept at 22 C and fed ad libitum. The metabolic rate of BAT of lean mice was stimulated 3-fold by norepinephrine. ob/ob mice are hyperglycemic and hyperinsulinemic; cold adaptation further increased their plasma glucose, and fasting decreased the levels of both glucose and insulin to normal values. Both fasting and cold adaptation at 5 C partially restored the tissue metabolic response of ob/ob mice, whereas a decreased sensitivity was observed in the tissue of lean mice. The results of these experiments are compatible with the hypothesis that the impaired capacity of BAT of ob/ob mice to produce heat could be one of the causes of their high food efficiency and their inability to withstand acute cold exposure.

Acclimatization↗
PubMed1982

Alterations of brown adipose tissue in genetically obese (ob/ob) mice. II. Studies of beta-adrenergic receptors and fatty acid degradation.

beta-Receptor number, norepinephrine-stimulated adenylate cyclase activity and lipolysis, octanoate-induced NAD(P) redox changes, and heat production were studied in brown adipose tissue (BAT) of lean and obese (ob/ob) mice. beta-Receptor number was increased 1.54-fold in purified brown adipocyte plasma membrane of ob/ob mice compared to that in lean controls. This increase was reversed by cold adaptation (5 C). Basal and norepinephrine-stimulated adenylate cyclase values were not different in the two groups. Norepinephrine stimulated lipolysis at 10 nM in BAT of lean mice, but only at 10 microM in BAT ob/ob mice. Octanoate produced an increase in the NAD(P) redox state in BAT of lean mice, but it did not modify the NAD(P) redox state in BAT of ob/ob mice. Concomitantly, octanoate increased heat production 3-fold in BAT of lean mice, but did not promote any significant increase in heat production in BAT of ob/ob mice. These two parameters were restored toward values observed in lean mice when the ob/ob mice were adapted to a cold environment. The data indicate that BAT of ob/ob mice exhibits three alterations; one at the level of the beta-receptor, one at the level of the lipolytic response to norepinephrine, and one at the level of fatty acid activation and/or beta-oxidation.

Adenylyl Cyclases↗
PubMed1981

Stimulation of hepatic lipogenesis and acetyl-coenzyme A carboxylase by vasopressin.

The effect of vasopressin on the short-term regulation of fatty acid synthesis was studied in isolated hepatocytes from rats fed ad libitum. Vasopressin stimulates fatty acid synthesis by 30-110%. This increase is comparable with that obtained with insulin. Angiotensin also stimulates fatty acid synthesis, whereas phenylephrine does not. The dose-response curve for vasopressin-stimulated lipogenesis is similar to the dose-response curve for glycogenolysis and release of lactate plus pyruvate. Vasopression also stimulates acetyl-CoA carboxylase activity in a dose-dependent manner. Vasopressin does not relieve glucagon-inhibited lipogenesis, whereas insulin does. The action of vasopressin on hepatic lipogenesis is decreased, but not suppressed, in Ca2+-depleted hepatocytes. The results suggest that vasopressin acts on lipogenesis by increasing availability of lipogenic substrate (lactate + pyruvate) and by activating acetyl-CoA carboxylase.

Acetyl-CoA Carboxylase↗
PubMed1981

Functional disconnection of brown adipose tissue in hypothalamic obesity in rats.

The metabolic responses to electrical nerve stimulation, norepinephrine or octanoate additions were studied using continuous monitoring of NAD(P)H/NADP redox state by reflexion spectrophotometry of interscapular brown adipose tissues from control and ventromedial hypothalamic (VMH) lesioned rats. The responses to these stimuli were all greatly decreased already 3 days after VMH lesions, indicating a reduced cell capacity to oxidize free fatty acids. Measurements of interscapular brown adipose tissue composition 4-5 weeks after VMH lesions showed a decrease of both DNA concentration and total content, indicating some tissue involution. It is concluded that the involvement of the ventromedial hypothalamus in the activation of brown adipose tissue provided a possible anatomical clue concerning pathways connecting thermal and weight regulations.

Adipose Tissue, Brown↗
PubMed1977

Effect of fasting and streptozotocin in the obese-hyperglycemic (ob/ob) mouse. Apparent lack of a direct relationship between insulin binding and insulin effects.

The decrease of insulin binding to plasma membranes of liver, adipose, and muscle tissues observed in obese-hyperglycemic (ob/ob) mice was reversed towards normal by prolonged fasting or streptozotocin treatment. The extent of this reversal was related to that of the decrease in hyperinsulinemia of the obese mice. In contrast, binding of glucagon to liver plasma membranes was little influenced by fasting or streptozotocin treatment of obese animals. The relationship between insulin binding and metabolic effects of the hormone did not appear to be identical in all tissues. In muscle, insulin binding and insulin effect on glucose uptake and metabolism changed in parallel--i.e., when binding increased, tissue sensitivity to the hormone increased. In the liver, the increase in insulin binding that followed fasting or streptozotocin treatment was not accompanied by any detectable metabolic effect of insulin on hepatic metabolism. A similar situation appeared to prevail in adipose tissue. The varying relationships observed between the state of insulin binding to membranes and the target tissue responsiveness to the hormone probably reflect the multiplicity of the factors operative in these processes and help us to understand why the over-all obese-hyperglycemic syndrome of ob/ob mice cannot be improved simply by decreasing endogenous hyperinsulinemia.

Adipose Tissue↗
PubMed1976

Does hyperinsulinemia in ob/ob mice cause an insulin-stimulated adipose tissue?

After a 1-h preincubation to remove endogenous insulin, adipose tissue of obese mice (C57BL/L4 ob/ob) had a lower rate of glucose metabolism than tissue which was not preincubated. In contrast, preincubation did not change the metabolism of adipose tissue from lean mice (C57B1/6J +/+). The preincubation effect was abolished in obese mice which had had their serum insulin levels lowered toward normal by streptozotocin treatment. Injection of anti-insulin serum to obese mice caused adipose tissue removed 15 min after the injection to display a rate of glucose metabolsim lower than that of tissue removed before the injection. No such effect was seen in lean mice. These data are consistent with the hypothesis that hyperinsulinemia in the obese mice causes a chronic state of insulin stimulation of their adipose tissue, possibly contributing to their high rates of lipogenesis and their obesity. Several lipogenic enzymes were measured in adipose tissue of both lean and obese mice, and no single enzymatic abnormality was detected which might explain the hyperlipogenesis. Pyruvate dehydrogenase and acetyl-CoA carboxylase were both insulin-sensitive enzymes in lean and obese mice.

ATP Citrate (pro-S)-Lyase↗
PubMed1976

An anomaly of insulin removal in perfused livers of obese-hyperglycemic (ob/ob) mice.

Obese-hyperglycemic (ob/ob) mice have the interesting feature of being hyperinsulinemic, thus having some characteristics in common with human maturity-onset diabetics. As the cause of hyperinsulinemia in these mice is not established, and as the liver is known to play a role in determining the amount of hormone that reaches the periphery, it was hypothesized that an anomaly in the hepatic handling of insulin might prevail in obese-hyperglycemic mice. Immunoreactive insulin was therefore measured in the perfusate before and after a single passage through perfused livers of lean and ob/ob mice, permitting. It was found that the removal of insulin by livers of lean mice increased with increasing concentrations of the hormone in the portal vein. The removal process had a limited capacity, however, and as a consequence the percentage of hormone removed by the liver actually decreased when portal insulin concentrations increased. Insulin removal by livers of ob/ob mice had qualitatively the same characteristics but was considerably less efficient than in normal livers. Due to this, more insulin was found in the perfusate leaving the liver of ob/9b mice than in that of controls, at any insulin concentration tested. These observations suggest that in obese-hyperglycemic mice more of the hormone may reach the periphery and thus contribute to hyperinsulinemia. The present study further suggests that the anomaly of insulin removal observed in perfused livers of ob/ob mice might be secondary to hyperinsulinemia, since it was partly corrected upon artificially decreasing the circulating levels of insulin (e.g. via a fast, anti-insulin serum, or streptozotocin treatment) before perfusion. The characteristics of hepatic insulin removal reported in this study, as well as the differences observed between livers of lean and ob/ob mice, may reflect changes in membrane insulin receptors and/or in processes responsible for the degradation of the horomone.

Animals↗