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Techniques and Methods

Brown adipose tissue transplantation as a novel alternative to obesity treatment: a systematic review

International Journal of Obesity volume 45, pages 109–121 (2021)Cite this article

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Abstract

Background

Obesity, a global challenge, is a complex disorder linked to various diseases. Different kinds of treatments are currently used to treat or control this pandemic. Despite their positive effects on controlling obesity, they still have limitations and side effects including digestive problems, difficulties of daily infusion of some drugs, surgical complications, and weight regain. All these issues cause these conventional methods not to have desirable efficacy. In this regard, brown adipose tissue (BAT) transplantation as a new investigational treatment is proposed, which has beneficial effects with no documented side effect in studies up to now.

Methods

This systematic review protocol was registered in the International Prospective Register of Systematic Reviews (Registration Number: CRD42018110045). The systematical search was conducted on Web of Science, Scopus, PubMed, Embase, and ProQuest databases. The quality assessments in the included studies and data gathering were conducted independently by two authors. The main variables were anthropometric indices including body weight, levels of leptin, IGF-1, glucagon, adiponectin, fasting blood glucose, and UCP-1.

Results

Following the search in mentioned databases, ten articles were entered into this systematic review. In most studies, weight gain and white adipocyte size were reduced in the BAT transplant group. It seems that the transplantation leads to the regeneration of healthy adipose tissue by activating the endogenous BAT.

Conclusions

Since BAT transplantation is one of the possible future treatments of obesity, many studies are conducted to evaluate the outcomes and related procedures precisely, so it can finally step into clinical application.

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Fig. 1: Flow chart for study identification and selection.
Fig. 2: Potential mechanisms and beneficial effects of BAT transplantation on metabolic health in mice.

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Acknowledgements

Implementation of this study was sponsored by Tehran University of Medical Sciences (Endocrinology and Metabolism Research Center).

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Obesity and Eating Habits Research Center, Endocrinology and Metabolism Molecular-Cellular Sciences Institute, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran

    Moloud Payab

  2. Cell Therapy and Regenerative Medicine Research Center, Endocrinology and Metabolism Molecular-Cellular Sciences Institute, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran

    Mina Abedi, Najmeh Foroughi Heravani, Mahdieh Hadavandkhani, Maryam Arabi, Akram Tayanloo-Beik & Babak Arjmand

  3. Metabolomics and Genomics Research Center, Endocrinology and Metabolism Molecular-Cellular Sciences Institute, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran

    Motahareh Sheikh Hosseini & Babak Arjmand

  4. Endocrinology and Metabolism Research Center, Endocrinology and Metabolism Clinical Sciences Institute, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran

    Hadis Gerami, Bagher Larijani & Mohammad Abdollahi

  5. Chronic Diseases Research Center, Endocrinology and Metabolism Population Sciences Institute, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran

    Fateme Khatami

  6. Toxicology and Diseases Group (TDG), Pharmaceutical Sciences Research Center (PSRC), The Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences (TIPS), and Department of Toxicology and Pharmacology, School of Pharmacy, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran

    Mohammad Abdollahi

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Contributions

M,P, participated in the study design, drafting of the paper, and had significant role in development of the selection criteria and data extraction criteria. N,F, M,A, M,H, M,A, and M,S,H, contributed to the development of the selection criteria, the risk of bias assessment strategy, data extraction criteria, and drafting of the paper. AT-B provided final approval of the version to publish. H,G, and F,K,H, developed the search strategy. B,L, participated in critical review. MA participated in the study design and interpretation. BA supervised the project from scientific view of point and advised on experimental design. All authors read, provided feedback, and approved the final paper.

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Correspondence to Babak Arjmand.

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Payab, M., Abedi, M., Foroughi Heravani, N. et al. Brown adipose tissue transplantation as a novel alternative to obesity treatment: a systematic review. Int J Obes 45, 109–121 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41366-020-0616-5

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