Abstract
Beige adipocytes are a distinct type of fat cells with a thermogenic activity that have gained substantial attention as an alternative cellular anti-obesity target in humans. These cells may provide an alternative strategy for the genetic selection of pigs with reduced fat deposition. Despite the presence of beige adipocytes in piglets, the molecular signatures of porcine beige adipocytes remain unclear. Here, white and beige adipocytes from Tibetan piglets were primarily cultured and differentiated. Compared to the white adipocytes, the beige adipocytes exhibited a stronger thermogenic capacity. RNA-sequencing-based genome-wide comparative analyses revealed distinct gene expression profiles for white and beige adipocytes. In addition, two genes, integrin alpha-2 (ITGA2) and calponin 1 (CNN1), which were specifically differentially expressed in porcine beige adipocytes, were further functionally characterized using a loss-of-function approach. Our data showed that both genes were involved in differentiation and thermogenesis of porcine beige adipocytes. Collectively, these data furthered our understanding of gene expression in porcine white and beige adipocytes. Elucidating the genetic basis of beige adipogenesis in pigs will pave the way for molecular design breeding in both pigs and large animal models of human diseases.
Highlights
Mammalian adipose tissue is an important endocrine organ regulating energy balance.Three kinds of adipocytes, white, brown, and beige, have been identified and can be classified into two categories according to their function: white adipocytes store excess energy in the form of triglycerides, and brown and beige adipocytes dissipate energy via adaptive thermogenesis
stromal vascular fraction (SVF) cells were obtained from the Inguinal subcutaneous white adipose tissues (IWAT) of Tibetan pigs and differentiated into mature white or beige adipocytes
To determine whether the beige adipocyte-related genes that we identified were specific for pigs or conserved across the species, the core brown fat-selective genes conserved in mice and humans, previously reported by Shinoda et al [10], were compared to porcine beige adipocyte-related genes (Figure 4D)
Summary
Mammalian adipose tissue is an important endocrine organ regulating energy balance.Three kinds of adipocytes, white, brown, and beige (or brite), have been identified and can be classified into two categories according to their function: white adipocytes store excess energy in the form of triglycerides, and brown and beige adipocytes dissipate energy via adaptive thermogenesis. Mammalian adipose tissue is an important endocrine organ regulating energy balance. The morphology of beige adipocytes is similar to brown adipocytes, exhibiting multilocular lipid droplets and dense uncoupling protein 1 (UCP1)-positive mitochondria [2]. The origins of these three adipocytes are distinct, as white adipocytes are differentiated from myogenic factor 5 (Myf5)-negative cells, while brown adipocytes share origins with skeletal muscles and are derived from Myf5-positive cells [3]. Beige adipocytes are interspersed within white adipose tissue in response to various stimuli, such as cold exposure and exercise [4]. Beige adipocytes have been demonstrated to be cellularly derived via de novo differentiation from resident precursors or via the reprogramming of mature white adipocytes [1]. Due to certain metabolic benefits, the induction and activation of beige fat have attracted considerable interest [5–7]
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