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Pediatrics

Brown adipose tissue in prepubertal children: associations with sex, birthweight, and metabolic profile

International Journal of Obesity volume 43, pages 384–391 (2019)Cite this article

Subjects

Abstract

Background/Objectives

Individuals born small-for-gestational age (SGA), especially those who experience postnatal catch-up growth, are at increased risk for developing endocrine-metabolic abnormalities before puberty. In adults, brown adipose tissue (BAT) has been associated with protection against metabolic disorders, such as obesity, type 2 diabetes, and dyslipidaemia. Here, we assessed for the first time whether BAT activation differs between prepubertal children born SGA or appropriate-for-gestational age (AGA).

Subjects/methods

The study population consisted of 86 prepubertal children [41 AGA and 45 SGA; age (mean ± SEM), 8.5 ± 0.1 years], recruited into two prospective longitudinal studies assessing endocrine-metabolic status and body composition in infancy and childhood. The temperature at the supraclavicular region (SCR) before and after a cold stimulus was measured by infrared thermal imaging, and the area of thermally active SCR (increase after cold challenge, ΔAreaSCR) was calculated as a surrogate index of BAT activation. The results were correlated with clinical, endocrine-metabolic, and inflammation variables, and with visceral and hepatic adiposity (assessed by Magnetic Resonance Imaging).

Results

No differences in BAT activation index, as judged by ΔAreaSCR, were found between AGA and SGA children. However, girls showed higher baseline and post-cold induction AreaSCR than boys (both p ≤ 0.01). An interaction between gender and birth weight subgroup was observed for BAT activation; AGA girls increased significantly the ΔAreaSCR as compared to AGA boys; this increase did not occur in SGA girls vs SGA boys. Cold-induced ΔAreaSCR negatively correlated with HOMA-IR, us-CRP, liver volume, and liver fat.

Conclusions

Prepubertal AGA girls had significantly greater BAT activation index as compared to AGA boys; this difference was not observed in SGA subjects. Higher BAT activation associated with a lower amount of visceral fat and with a favorable metabolic profile. Long-term follow-up is needed to determine whether those differences relate to pubertal timing, and to the development of obesity and metabolic disorders.

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Acknowledgements

RM, GS, and LI are investigators of CIBERDEM (www.ciberdem.org). ALB is an investigator of the I3 Fund for Scientific research (Ministry of Education and Science, Spain). LI and RM had full access to all of the data in the study and take responsibility for the integrity of the data and the accuracy of the data analysis. This study was supported by the Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación, Instituto de Salud Carlos III, and by the Fondo Europeo de Desarrollo Regional (FEDER) (PI11/02403).

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Author notes

  1. These authors contributed equally: Rita Malpique, José Miguel Gallego-Escuredo.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Endocrinology, Pediatric Research Institute Sant Joan de Déu, University of Barcelona, 08950, Esplugues, Barcelona, Spain

    Rita Malpique, Giorgia Sebastiani & Lourdes Ibáñez

  2. Network Biomedical Research Center of Diabetes and Associated Metabolic Disorders (CIBERDEM), Health Institute Carlos III, 28029, Madrid, Spain

    Rita Malpique, Giorgia Sebastiani & Lourdes Ibáñez

  3. Biochemistry and Molecular Biomedicine Department, Biomedicine Institute, University of Barcelona, 08028, Barcelona, Spain

    José Miguel Gallego-Escuredo, Joan Villarroya & Francesc Villarroya

  4. Hospital de la Santa Creu i Sant Pau, 08041, Barcelona, Spain

    Joan Villarroya

  5. Hospital Dr. Josep Trueta & Girona Institute for Biomedical Research, 17007, Girona, Spain

    Abel López-Bermejo

  6. Department of Development & Regeneration, University of Leuven, 3000, Leuven, Belgium

    Francis de Zegher

  7. Network Biomedical Research Center of Physiopathology of Obesity and Nutrition (CIBEROBN), Health Institute Carlos III, 28029, Madrid, Spain

    Francesc Villarroya

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  1. Rita Malpique
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Correspondence to Lourdes Ibáñez.

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Malpique, R., Gallego-Escuredo, J.M., Sebastiani, G. et al. Brown adipose tissue in prepubertal children: associations with sex, birthweight, and metabolic profile. Int J Obes 43, 384–391 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41366-018-0198-7

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