Effect of epinephrine deficiency on cold tolerance and on brown adipose tissue

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• 作者：Rana I. Sharara-Chami ; Maria Joachim ; Michelle Mulcahey ; Steven Ebert ; Joseph A. Majzoub
• 关键词：Hypothermia ; Epinephrine ; Knockout ; Thermogenesis ; Brown adipose tissue
• 刊名：Molecular and Cellular Endocrinology
• 出版年：2010
• 出版时间：26 October 2010
• 年：2010
• 卷：328
• 期：1-2
• 页码：34-39
• 全文大小：452 K

文摘

Catecholamines are involved in thermogenesis. We investigated the specific role of epinephrine in regulation of temperature homeostasis in mice. We subjected adult wildtype (WT) and phenylethanolamine N-methyl transferase knock out mice (Pnmt^−/−) lacking epinephrine to cold for 24 h. Body temperature and thyroid hormone levels were not different between WT and Pnmt^−/− mice. Although temperature was normal in Pnmt^−/− mice, the brown fat response to cold was abnormal with no increase in Ucp-1 or Pgc-1α mRNA levels (but with an exaggerated cold-induced lipid loss from the tissue). Our results show that epinephrine may have a role in brown fat mitochondrial uncoupling through regulation of Ucp-1 and Pgc-1α, although this is not required to maintain a normal temperature during acute cold exposure. We conclude that epinephrine may have an important role in induction of Ucp-1 and Pgc-1α gene expression during cold stress.