FoxO1 represents a central regulator of metabolism in several cell types. Although FoxO1 is abundant in adipocytes, its biological functions in these cells remain largely unknown. We show here that the promotor region of the rate-limiting lipolytic enzyme, adipose triglyceride lipase (ATGL), has two FoxO1-binding sites, and co-transfection with wild type and unphosphorylated FoxO1 mutant activates the expression of luciferase driven by the ATGL promotor. In 3T3-L1 adipocytes, insulin controls nucleo-cytoplasmic shuttling of FoxO1 and regulates its interaction with endogenous ATGL promotors. Knockdown of FoxO1 in 3T3-L1 adipocytes decreases the expression of ATGL and attenuates basal and isoproterenol-stimulated lipolysis. Infection of mouse embryonic fibroblasts with FoxO1-encoding lentivirus increases ATGL expression and renders it sensitive to regulation by insulin. Thus, FoxO1 may play an important role in the regulation of lipolysis in adipocytes by controlling the expression of ATGL.One of the key physiological functions of insulin in the mammalian organism is to inhibit lipolysis and to promote accumulation and storage of triglycerides in fat tissue. Control of lipolysis plays an important role in energy partitioning and balance and maintains the size of fat depots in the body. In patients with insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes, insulin cannot suppress high levels of free fatty acids (FFA) 2 in the bloodstream (1) so that the availability of FFA exceeds the energy requirements of the body. As a result, FFA are accumulated in the form of lipids in non-adipose peripheral tissues, such as liver and skeletal muscle, aggravating insulin resistance and causing multiple hazardous metabolic effects (2, 3). In addition, excess of FFA may lead to overproduction of VLDL in the liver and predispose the organism to cardiovascular disease.The complete hydrolysis of triglycerides to glycerol and FFA is performed jointly by tri-, di-, and monoacylglyceride lipases (4, 5). Recently discovered adipose triglyceride lipase ATGL (6 -8) is responsible for the bulk of triacylglycerol hydrolase activity in cells and has low affinity to di-and monoacylglycerides (4, 5). Importantly, ATGL is now considered the rate-limiting lipolytic enzyme in mammals (9), flies (10), and yeast (11). The major diacylglyceride lipase in adipocytes is hormone-sensitive lipase, or HSL (5). ATGL-and HSL-mediated hydrolase activity is controlled by catecholamines primarily via the cAMP-mediated-phosphorylation of perilipin (12, 13), the major lipid droplet-forming protein in adipocytes (14). Monoacylglyceride lipase in adipocytes is believed to be hormone-independent (4).The effect of insulin on lipolysis is attributed to the stimulation of activity and/or the expression of cyclic nucleotide phosphodiesterases 3B and 4 (15-17), which decrease intracellular levels of cAMP and reverse the stimulatory effect of cAMP-dependent protein kinase on lipolysis (5). In parallel, insulin may suppress lipolysis in a cAMP-independent fashion by stimulating pro...