Understanding the brown adipocyte as a contributor to energy homeostasis
Abstract
Brown adipocytes are specialized cells capable of undergoing thermogenesis, a phenomenon regulated by the sympathetic nervous system, due to the presence of uncoupling protein 1 (UCP1). The recent demonstrations of their presence in adult humans, and the discovery that brown adipocytes can be derived from distinct precursors and express specific genes depending on their anatomic location, have sparked intense interest in enhancing the current understanding of their biology and relevance to human energy homeostasis. We provide an overview of the latest advances related to the developmental origins of brown adipocytes, discuss their regulation and function in both rodents and humans, and offer a critical perspective on the relevance of brown adipocyte-mediated thermogenesis in human physiology.
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Acting via the sympathetic nervous system, the hypothalamus is a key effector of CNS influence on adipose tissue, including response to cold.
“Acting via the sympathetic nervous system32,43,44. the hypothalamus is a key effector of CNS influence on adipose tissue, including response to cold.”
From IDOL regulates systemic energy balance through control of neuronal VLDLR expression (2019) · cites this paper as [43]
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IDOL regulates systemic energy balance through control of neuronal VLDLR expression
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- Authors
- Chechi, K., Carpentier, A. C., & Richard, D.
- Affiliations
- Institut universitaire de cardiologie et de pneumologie de Québec (CA)
- Corresponding author
- Richard, Denis
- Venue
- Trends in Endocrinology & Metabolism
- Publisher
- Elsevier BV
- Published
- 2013-08
- Volume
- 24
- Issue
- 8
- Pages
- 408-420
- ISSN
- 1043-2760 (ISSN-L)
- OpenAlex
- W2015925329
- Cited by
- 99
- References
- 21
- Citations by year
- 2026: 2 · 2025: 3 · 2024: 4 · 2023: 4 · 2022: 10 · 2021: 2 · 2020: 11 · 2019: 11 · 2018: 7 · 2017: 13 · 2016: 10 · 2015: 15 · 2014: 6 · 2013: 1
- FWCI
- 1.16
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Trends in Endocrinology and Metabolism (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Funders
- GlaxoSmithKline
- Université de Sherbrooke
- Canadian Institutes of Health Research
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Physiology › Adipose Tissue and Metabolism
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Epidemiology › Adipokines, Inflammation, and Metabolic Diseases
- Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Molecular Biology › Peroxisome Proliferator-Activated Receptors
- Keywords
- brown adipocytes, thermogenesis, energy homeostasis, UCP1, sympathetic nervous system, brown adipose tissue, human physiology
- MeSH terms
- Uncoupling Protein 1, Energy Metabolism, Humans, Ion Channels, Sympathetic Nervous System, Thermogenesis, Mitochondrial Proteins, Adipocytes, Brown
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