Contributions of White and Brown Adipose Tissues to the Circadian Regulation of Energy Metabolism

Jan 16, 2021Endocrinology

How white and brown fat tissues affect daily rhythms in energy use

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Abstract

Energy metabolism is regulated by in white and brown adipose tissue.

Circadian clocks in adipose tissue help regulate nutrient uptake, storage, and breakdown.
White adipose tissue stores energy as triglycerides and releases factors that influence food intake and energy use in a circadian manner.
Brown adipose tissue generates heat through a process controlled by its own circadian clock.
Disruption of circadian rhythms can alter the regulation of adipose tissue, potentially leading to obesity.
Stabilizing circadian rhythms in adipose tissue may assist in maintaining energy balance and preventing obesity.

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The term energy metabolism comprises the entirety of chemical processes associated with uptake, conversion, storage, and breakdown of nutrients. All these must be tightly regulated in time and space to ensure metabolic homeostasis in an environment characterized by cycles such as the succession of day and night. Most organisms evolved endogenous circadian clocks to achieve this goal. In mammals, a ubiquitous network of cellular clocks is coordinated by a pacemaker residing in the hypothalamic suprachiasmatic nucleus. Adipocytes harbor their own circadian clocks, and large aspects of adipose physiology are regulated in a circadian manner through transcriptional regulation of clock-controlled genes. White adipose tissue (WAT) stores energy in the form of triglycerides at times of high energy levels that then serve as fuel in times of need. It also functions as an endocrine organ, releasing factors in a circadian manner to regulate food intake and energy turnover in other tissues. Brown adipose tissue (BAT) produces heat through nonshivering thermogenesis, a process also controlled by the circadian clock. We here review how WAT and BAT contribute to the circadian regulation of energy metabolism. We describe how adipose rhythms are regulated by the interplay of systemic signals and local clocks and summarize how adipose-originating circadian factors feed-back on metabolic homeostasis. The role of adipose tissue in the circadian control of metabolism becomes increasingly clear as circadian disruption leads to alterations in adipose tissue regulation, promoting obesity and its sequelae. Stabilizing adipose tissue rhythms, in turn, may help to combat disrupted energy homeostasis and obesity.

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Contributions of White and Brown Adipose Tissues to the Circadian Regulation of Energy Metabolism

Abstract

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