Up-regulation of a thermogenesis-related gene (UCP1) and down-regulation of PPARγ and aP2 genes in adipose tissue: Possible features of the antiobesity effects of a β3-adrenergic agonist

A number of experiments have demonstrated the antiobesity effects of β₃-adrenergic receptor stimulation by promoting thermogenesis and/or lipolysis. While many studies have been performed in order to develop β₃-adrenergic agonists as a novel strategy in the management of obesity, more information is needed about the mechanisms involved in thermogenesis and the actions of these drugs on adipocyte differentiation. To address this, the possible thermogenic and antiadipogenic properties of Tertatolol, a β₃-adrenergic agonist, in a diet-induced obesity model has been tested. Animals fed on a high-fat diet gained more weight and fat mass as compared with control and high-fat fed animals treated with Tertatolol. A RT-PCR was carried out in white adipose tissue specific genes involved in thermogenesis such as uncoupling proteins (UCPs) and adipogenesis such as peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor (PPARγ2), retinoid receptors (RXRα/RARα), and fatty acid binding protein (aP2). Levels of UCP1 mRNA were augmented in the Tertatolol-treated group as compared to non-treated high-fat fed animals, while the β₃-adrenergic agonist treatment significantly decreased the expression levels of aP2 and transcription factors such as PPARγ2 and the ratio RXRα/RARα as compared to obese rats. Altogether these data suggest that the antiobesity effects of β₃-adrenergic agonists are not limited to the promotion of thermogenesis and/or lipolysis and support the implication that these β₃-adrenergic agonists also affect fat deposition by impairing adipogenesis in white adipose tissue (WAT).