Activating Connexin43 gap junctions primes adipose tissue for therapeutic intervention.

ABSTRACT: Adipose tissue is a promising target for treating obesity and metabolic diseases. However, pharmacological agents usually fail to effectively engage adipocytes due to their extraordinarily large size and insufficient vascularization, especially in obese subjects. We have previously shown that during cold exposure, connexin43 (Cx43) gap junctions are induced and activated to connect neighboring adipocytes to share limited sympathetic neuronal input amongst multiple cells. We reason the same mechanism may be leveraged to improve the efficacy of various pharmacological agents that target adipose tissue. Using an adipose tissue-specific Cx43 overexpression mouse model, we demonstrate effectiveness in connecting adipocytes to augment metabolic efficacy of the β ₃-adrenergic re

SUBMITTER: Zhu Y 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9293664 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature