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Effects of leptin on the differentiation and metabolism of human adipocytes

International Journal of Obesity volume 25, pages 1465–1470 (2001)Cite this article

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Leptin is an adipose protein regulating food intake in the hypothalamus. Animal studies have suggested that leptin also acts in an auto-/paracrine fashion on adipose cell function.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of leptin on the differentiation and metabolism of cultured human adipocytes.

MATERIAL: Adipose tissue from young healthy, lean women (body mass index (BMI) <27 kg/m2) undergoing elective mammary reduction surgery and young obese individuals (BMI>40 kg/m2) undergoing laparoscopic gastric banding.

METHODS: Human preadipocytes in primary culture were induced to undergo differentiation by defined adipogenic factors. Mature adipocytes were isolated by collagenase digestion and kept in culture suspension. Glycero-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GPDH) activity was used as a marker of adipose differentiation; glucose uptake, lipolysis and PAI-1 secretion were measured as parameters of fat cell function.

RESULTS: Human preadipocytes and adipocytes from lean and obese subjects expressed the long leptin receptor isoform and two of the three short forms as assessed by polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Leptin at a supraphysiological concentration induced a transient increase of GPDH activity, but had no effect on glucose uptake and PAI-1 secretion from human adipocytes. In addition, basal and isoproterenol-stimulated lipolysis as well as the antilipolytic action of insulin in human adipocytes was not significantly affected by leptin exposure.

CONCLUSION: In contrast to animal data, the results of our experiments do not demonstrate significant effects of leptin on main metabolic functions of human adipocytes arguing against a local auto-/paracrine action of leptin in human adipose tissue.

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Acknowledgements

We wish to thank Professor Dr R Olbrisch and his team from the Department of Plastic Surgery at the Florence Nightingale Hospital Düsseldorf-Kaiserswerth and Professor Dr B Husemann and his team from the Surgical Department of the Dominikus-Krankenhaus, Düsseldorf-Heerdt for their support in obtaining adipose tissue samples. This work was supported by a grant to I A-H from the Eli Lilly International Foundation.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. German Diabetes Research Institute at the Heinrich-Heine-University, Auf'm Hennekamp 65, Düsseldorf, 40225, Germany

    I Aprath-Husmann, K Röhrig, H Gottschling-Zeller, T Skurk, D Scriba, M Birgel & H Hauner

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  1. I Aprath-Husmann
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  2. K Röhrig
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  3. H Gottschling-Zeller
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  7. H Hauner
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Correspondence to H Hauner.

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Aprath-Husmann, I., Röhrig, K., Gottschling-Zeller, H. et al. Effects of leptin on the differentiation and metabolism of human adipocytes. Int J Obes 25, 1465–1470 (2001). https://doi.org/10.1038/sj.ijo.0801737

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