Circulating adipocyte-derived extracellular vesicles are novel markers of metabolic stress

Evidence from laboratory and animal studies provides groundwork for understanding mechanisms and potential before human studies continue.

• Level A · Stronger Clinical Evidence
• Level B · Emerging clinical evidence with positive signals
• Level C · Early human research exploring benefits
• Level D · Scientific groundwork from lab and animal studies
• Emerging · Emerging topic under active research

Abstract (original English)

We recently reported that stressed adipocytes release extracellular vesicles (EVs) that act as "find-me" signals to promote macrophage migration and activation. In this study, we performed a comprehensive characterization of stressed adipocyte-derived EVs, assessing their antigenic composition, lipidomics, and RNA profiles. Perilipin A was identified as one of the adipose-specific proteins and studied as a potential novel biomarker to detect adipocyte-derived EVs in circulation. Circulating EVs were significantly increased in mice with diet-induced obesity (DIO) and in obese humans with metabolic syndrome compared to lean controls. This increase was associated with decreased glucose tolerance in the DIO mice and metabolic dysfunction, elevated insulin, and homeostatic model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) in the obese humans. EVs from both DIO mice and obese humans were enriched in perilipin A, a central gatekeeper of the adipocyte lipid storehouse and a marker of adipocyte differentiation. In obese humans, circulating levels of EVs enriched in perilipin A were dynamic, decreasing 35 % (p Key message • Extensive characterization of 3T3L1 EVs identified perilipin A in their composition. • Circulating EVs are elevated in obese mice and associated with glucose intolerance. • Circulating EVs are elevated in obese human and correlated with metabolic factors. • Perilipin A

Evidence level

Evidence from laboratory and animal studies provides groundwork for understanding mechanisms and potential before human studies continue.

Browse all related research

Filter the research library by this study's title keywords, author, or publication year.