7 votes

Ablation of Galectin-12 Results in Enhanced Lipolysis and Reduced Adiposity in Mice

Ri-Yao Yang¹, Lan Yu¹, Daniel K. Hsu¹, K. C. Kent Lloyd² & Fu-Tong Liu¹

Correspondence: (Login to view email address)

1. Department of Dermatology, School of Medicine, University of California, Davis
2. Mouse Biology Program, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of California, Davis

PDF (925.6 KB)

Document Type:

Manuscript

Date:

Received 06 May 2009 00:30 UTC; Posted 06 May 2009

Subjects:

Molecular Cell Biology

Tags:

• adipocytes
• adipose
• lipolysis
• Obesity
• galectin
• galectin-12
• metabolism

Abstract:

Aside from leptin, galectin-12 is the only other gene exclusively expressed in mouse adipose tissue, suggesting an important role in energy homeostasis. The breakdown of triglycerides, or lipolysis, is a tightly controlled process to tailor fat mobilization according to the body’s energy status. Lipolysis is stimulated by hormones that signal energy demand, and suppressed the satiety hormone insulin. However, much still remains to be learned about the intracellular control of lipolytic signaling in adipocytes. Here we show that galectin-12 functions as an intrinsic negative regulator of lipolysis by modulating cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP) levels. Galectin-12 deficiency reduced adiposity of mice on regular chow, alleviated obesity in old ob/ob mice, and accelerated fasting-induced fat mobilization in mice that had been fed a high-fat diet. This study identifies a critical intracellular function for galectin-12 in lipid metabolism that could have important implications for future research of galectins and human metabolic disorders.

Discussion

Votes:

7 votes

(Login to vote)

Comments:

0 comments

(Login to post a comment)

Share:

(Login to share with a colleague)

Additional information

License:

This document is licensed to the public under the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License

How to cite this document:

Yang, Ri-Yao, Yu, Lan, Hsu, Daniel, Lloyd, K. C. Kent, and Liu, Fu-Tong. Ablation of Galectin-12 Results in Enhanced Lipolysis and Reduced Adiposity in Mice. Available from Nature Precedings <http://hdl.handle.net/10101/npre.2009.3224.1> (2009)

Version info:

Other versions of this document in Nature Precedings

None.

Other versions of this document elsewhere on the web

None known.

Submit a new version link