Obesity is characterized by the development of a low-grade chronic inflammatory state in different metabolic tissues including adipose tissue and liver. This inflammation develops in response to an excess of nutrient flux and is now recognized as an important link between obesity and insulin resistance. Several dietary factors like saturated fatty acids and glucose as well as changes in gut microbiota have been proposed as triggers of this metabolic inflammation through the activation of pattern-recognition receptors (PRRs), including Toll-like receptors (TLR), inflammasome, and nucleotide oligomerization domain (NOD). The consequences are the production of pro-inflammatory cytokines and the recruitment of immune cells such as macrophages and T lymphocytes in metabolic tissues. Inflammatory cytokines activate several kinases like IKKβ, mTOR/S6 kinase, and MAP kinases as well as SOCS proteins that interfere with insulin signaling and action in adipocytes and hepatocytes. In this review, we summarize recent studies demonstrating that PRRs and stress kinases are important integrators of metabolic and inflammatory stress signals in metabolic tissues leading to peripheral and central insulin resistance and metabolic dysfunction. We discuss recent data obtained with genetically modified mice and pharmacological approaches suggesting that these inflammatory pathways are potential novel pharmacological targets for the management of obesity-associated insulin resistance.

ObjectiveHepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) development occurs with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) in the absence of cirrhosis and with an increasing incidence due to the obesity pandemic. Mutations of tumour suppressor (TS) genes and oncogenes (ONC) have been widely characterised in HCC. However, mounting evidence indicates that non-genomic alterations of TS/ONC occur early with NAFLD, thereby potentially promoting hepatocarcinogenesis in an inflammatory/fibrotic context. The aim of this study was to identify and characterise these alterations.DesignThe proteome of steatotic liver tissues from mice spontaneously developing HCC was analysed. Alterations of TSs/ONCs were further investigated in various mouse models of NAFLD/HCC and in human samples. The inflammatory, fibrogenic and oncogenic functions of S100A11 were assessed through in vivo, in vitro and ex-vivo analyses.ResultsA whole set of TSs/ONCs, respectively, downregulated or upregulated was uncovered in mice and human with NAFLD. Alterations of these TSs/ONCs were preserved or even exacerbated in HCC. Among them, overexpression of S100A11 was associated with high-grade HCC and poor prognosis. S100A11 downregulation in vivo significantly restrains the development of inflammation and fibrosis in mice fed a choline/methionine-deficient diet. Finally, in vitro and ex-vivo analyses revealed that S100A11 is a marker of hepatocyte de-differentiation, secreted by cancer cells, and promoting cell proliferation and migration.ConclusionCellular stress associated with NAFLD triggers non-genomic alterations of a whole network of TSs/ONCs fostering hepatocarcinogenesis. Among those, overexpression of the oncogenic factor S100A11 promotes inflammation/fibrosis in vivo and is significantly associated with high-grade HCC with poor prognosis.

Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor γ (PPARγ) is a master regulator of energy metabolism. In bone, it is known to regulate osteoblast differentiation and osteoclast activity. Whether PPARγ expression in bone cells, particularly osteocytes, regulates energy metabolism remains unknown. Here, we show that mature osteoblast/osteocyte-specific ablation of PPARγ in mice (γ/) alters body composition with age, namely, to produce less fat and more lean mass, and enhances insulin sensitivity and energy expenditure compared with wild-type mice. In addition, γ mice exhibit more bone density, structure, and strength by uncoupling bone formation from resorption. When challenged with a high-fat diet, γ mice retain glycemic control, with increased browning of the adipose tissue, decreased gluconeogenesis, and less hepatic steatosis. Moreover, these metabolic effects, particularly an increase in fatty acid oxidation, cannot be explained by decarboxylated osteocalcin changes, suggesting existence of other osteokines that are under the control of PPARγ. We further identify bone morphogenetic protein 7 as one of them. Hence, osteocytes coregulate bone and glucose homeostasis through a PPARγ regulatory pathway, and its inhibition could be clinically relevant for the prevention of glucose metabolic disorders.

miR-22 is one of the most abundant miRNAs in the liver and alterations of its hepatic expression have been associated with the development of hepatic steatosis and insulin resistance, as well as cancer. However, the pathophysiological roles of miR-22-3p in the deregulated hepatic metabolism with obesity and cancer remains poorly characterized. Herein, we observed that alterations of hepatic miR-22-3p expression with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) in the context of obesity are not consistent in various human cohorts and animal models in contrast to the well-characterized miR-22-3p downregulation observed in hepatic cancers. To unravel the role of miR-22 in obesity-associated NAFLD, we generated constitutive Mir22 knockout (miR-22KO) mice, which were subsequently rendered obese by feeding with fat-enriched diet. Functional NAFLD- and obesity-associated metabolic parameters were then analyzed. Insights about the role of miR-22 in NAFLD associated with obesity were further obtained through an unbiased proteomic analysis of miR-22KO livers from obese mice. Metabolic processes governed by miR-22 were finally investigated in hepatic transformed cancer cells. Deletion of Mir22 was asymptomatic when mice were bred under standard conditions, except for an onset of glucose intolerance. However, when challenged with a high fat-containing diet, Mir22 deficiency dramatically exacerbated fat mass gain, hepatomegaly, and liver steatosis in mice. Analyses of explanted white adipose tissue revealed increased lipid synthesis, whereas mass spectrometry analysis of the liver proteome indicated that Mir22 deletion promotes hepatic upregulation of key enzymes in glycolysis and lipid uptake. Surprisingly, expression of miR-22-3p in Huh7 hepatic cancer cells triggers, in contrast to our in vivo observations, a clear induction of a Warburg effect with an increased glycolysis and an inhibited mitochondrial respiration. Together, our study indicates that miR-22-3p is a master regulator of the lipid and glucose metabolism with differential effects in specific organs and in transformed hepatic cancer cells, as compared to non-tumoral tissue.

Background/Aims Impaired insulin action is an early event in the pathogenesis of obesity and type 2-diabetes, and among the metabolic confounders in obese, hyperleptinaemia is constantly present; however its impact on insulin action in the brain and locomotor activity is unknown. MethodsWe examined insulin action by Western Blot analysis and glycogen synthesis in primary astrocytes and brain tissue and detected locomotion in C57BL/6 mice. The insulin-mediated desire to move was evaluated in healthy volunteers and correlated to leptin levels. Results Leptin treatment led to a significant decrease in insulin-mediated phosphorylation of the insulin receptor and Akt473 which was accompanied by a decline in glycogen synthesis in primary astrocytes and significantly decreased insulin-induced phosphorylation of the insulin receptor and insulin receptor substrate-2 in brain tissues of mice. Intracerebroventricular insulin failed to promote locomotion in the presence of elevated leptin levels. Lean human subjects reported an increase in the desire to move following insulin which failed in obese and there was an inverse correlation between the insulin-mediated desire to move and leptin levels. Conclusions Our data suggest a crosstalk of leptin and insulin in the brain which leads to a decline in locomotor activity. This might represent a molecular mechanism in obese to inhibit physical activity.