Abstract
An investigation of new ways to activate brown adipose tissue (BAT) is highly valuable, as it is a possible tool for obesity prevention and treatment. The aim of our study was to evaluate the relationships between dietary intake and BAT activity. The study group comprised 28 healthy non-smoking males aged 21–42 years. All volunteers underwent a physical examination and 75-g OGTT and completed 3-day food intake diaries to evaluate macronutrients and fatty acid intake. Body composition measurements were assessed using DXA scanning. An FDG-18 PET/MR was performed to visualize BAT activity. Brown adipose tissue was detected in 18 subjects (67% normal-weight individuals and 33% overweight/obese). The presence of BAT corresponded with a lower visceral adipose tissue (VAT) content (p = 0.04, after adjustment for age, daily kcal intake, and DXA Lean mass). We noted significantly lower omega-6 fatty acids (p = 0.03) and MUFA (p = 0.02) intake in subjects with detected BAT activity after adjustment for age, daily average kcal intake, and DXA Lean mass, whereas omega-3 fatty acids intake was comparable between the two groups. BAT presence was positively associated with the concentration of serum IL-6 (p = 0.01) during cold exposure. Our results show that BAT activity may be related to daily omega-6 fatty acids intake.
Highlights
An investigation of new ways to activate brown adipose tissue (BAT) is highly valuable, as it is a possible tool for obesity prevention and treatment
Brown adipose tissue was detected in 18 volunteers (BAT-positive) (Table 1), with a mean age of years and a mean BMI of kg/m2
In 10 volunteers who underwent a 2 h cold exposure test, we did not observe the activity of brown adipose tissue in PET/magnetic resonance (MR) images
Summary
An investigation of new ways to activate brown adipose tissue (BAT) is highly valuable, as it is a possible tool for obesity prevention and treatment. The presence of BAT corresponded with a lower visceral adipose tissue (VAT) content (p = 0.04, after adjustment for age, daily kcal intake, and DXA Lean mass). We noted significantly lower omega-6 fatty acids (p = 0.03) and MUFA (p = 0.02) intake in subjects with detected BAT activity after adjustment for age, daily average kcal intake, and DXA Lean mass, whereas omega-3 fatty acids intake was comparable between the two groups. Brown adipose tissue was initially thought to be present only in infants and children to maintain their core body temperature, but studies have confirmed its presence in adults5—more commonly in lean individuals than in obese individuals[6]. The most known activators of brown adipose tissue are cold exposure and the agonist of the sympathetic nervous system (SNS)[7,8]. Potential channels, most of which are receptors for various food products, such as capsaicin and its analogs, vanilloid[11,12], which are representative agonists of the transient receptor potential vanilloid 1 13
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