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Bartelt, Alexander

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Bartelt

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Alexander

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Bartelt, Alexander

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Now showing 1 - 6 of 6
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    Brown fat activation reduces hypercholesterolaemia and protects from atherosclerosis development
    (Nature Pub. Group, 2015) Berbée, Jimmy F. P.; Boon, Mariëtte R; Khedoe, P. Padmini S. J.; Bartelt, Alexander; Schlein, Christian; Worthmann, Anna; Kooijman, Sander; Hoeke, Geerte; Mol, Isabel M.; John, Clara; Jung, Caroline; Vazirpanah, Nadia; Brouwers, Linda P.J.; Gordts, Philip L.S.M.; Esko, Jeffrey D.; Hiemstra, Pieter S.; Havekes, Louis M.; Scheja, Ludger; Heeren, Joerg; Rensen, Patrick C.N.
    Brown adipose tissue (BAT) combusts high amounts of fatty acids, thereby lowering plasma triglyceride levels and reducing obesity. However, the precise role of BAT in plasma cholesterol metabolism and atherosclerosis development remains unclear. Here we show that BAT activation by β3-adrenergic receptor stimulation protects from atherosclerosis in hyperlipidemic APOE*3-Leiden.CETP mice, a well-established model for human-like lipoprotein metabolism that unlike hyperlipidemic Apoe−/− and Ldlr−/− mice expresses functional apoE and LDLR. BAT activation increases energy expenditure and decreases plasma triglyceride and cholesterol levels. Mechanistically, we demonstrate that BAT activation enhances the selective uptake of fatty acids from triglyceride-rich lipoproteins into BAT, subsequently accelerating the hepatic clearance of the cholesterol-enriched remnants. These effects depend on a functional hepatic apoE-LDLR clearance pathway as BAT activation in Apoe−/− and Ldlr−/− mice does not attenuate hypercholesterolaemia and atherosclerosis. We conclude that activation of BAT is a powerful therapeutic avenue to ameliorate hyperlipidaemia and protect from atherosclerosis.
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    Brown adipose tissue thermogenic adaptation requires Nrf1-mediated proteasomal activity
    (Springer Nature, 2018) Bartelt, Alexander; Widenmaier, Scott; Schlein, Christian; Johann, Kornelia; Goncalves, Renata; Eguchi, Kosei; Fischer, Alexander W; Parlakgul, Gunes; Snyder, Nicole; Nguyen, Truc B; Bruns, Oliver T; Franke, Daniel; Bawendi, Moungi G; Lynes, Matthew; Leiria, Luiz O; Tseng, Yu-Hua; Inouye, Karen; Arruda, Ana; Hotamisligil, Gokhan
    Objective Brown adipose tissue (BAT) generates heat in response to cold, and low BAT activity has been linked to obesity. However, recent studies were inconclusive as to whether BAT is involved in diet‐induced thermogenesis and mitigates weight gain from prolonged overeating. Therefore, this study investigated whether BAT activity is related to metabolic adaptation arising from 8 weeks of overfeeding in humans. Methods Fourteen men (aged 24 ± 3 years, BMI 24.5 ± 1.6 kg/m2) were overfed by 40% for 8 weeks. Before and after, energy expenditure and metabolic adaptation were measured by whole‐room respiratory calorimetry. A marker of BAT activity was measured using infrared imaging of the supraclavicular BAT depot. Results At the end of 8 weeks of overfeeding, metabolic adaptation—defined as the percent increase in sleeping energy expenditure beyond that expected from weight gain—rose from −0.9 ± 3.9% to 4.7 ± 5.6% (P = 0.001). However, BAT thermal activity was unchanged (P = 0.81). Moreover, BAT thermal activity did not correlate with the degree of metabolic adaptation (P = 0.32) or with the change in body weight (P = 0.51). Conclusions BAT thermal activity does not change in response to overfeeding, nor does it correlate with adaptive thermogenesis. Our data suggest that BAT does not mediate metabolic adaptation to overeating in humans.
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    Thermogenic adipocytes promote HDL turnover and reverse cholesterol transport
    (Nature Publishing Group, 2017) Bartelt, Alexander; John, Clara; Schaltenberg, Nicola; Berbée, Jimmy F. P.; Worthmann, Anna; Cherradi, M. Lisa; Schlein, Christian; Piepenburg, Julia; Boon, Mariëtte R.; Rinninger, Franz; Heine, Markus; Toedter, Klaus; Niemeier, Andreas; Nilsson, Stefan K.; Fischer, Markus; Wijers, Sander L.; van Marken Lichtenbelt, Wouter; Scheja, Ludger; Rensen, Patrick C. N.; Heeren, Joerg
    Brown and beige adipocytes combust nutrients for thermogenesis and through their metabolic activity decrease pro-atherogenic remnant lipoproteins in hyperlipidemic mice. However, whether the activation of thermogenic adipocytes affects the metabolism and anti-atherogenic properties of high-density lipoproteins (HDL) is unknown. Here, we report a reduction in atherosclerosis in response to pharmacological stimulation of thermogenesis linked to increased HDL levels in APOE*3-Leiden.CETP mice. Both cold-induced and pharmacological thermogenic activation enhances HDL remodelling, which is associated with specific lipidomic changes in mouse and human HDL. Furthermore, thermogenic stimulation promotes HDL-cholesterol clearance and increases macrophage-to-faeces reverse cholesterol transport in mice. Mechanistically, we show that intravascular lipolysis by adipocyte lipoprotein lipase and hepatic uptake of HDL by scavenger receptor B-I are the driving forces of HDL-cholesterol disposal in liver. Our findings corroborate the notion that high metabolic activity of thermogenic adipocytes confers atheroprotective properties via increased systemic cholesterol flux through the HDL compartment.
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    The cold-induced lipokine 12,13-diHOME promotes fatty acid transport into brown adipose tissue
    (Springer Nature, 2017) Lynes, Matthew; Leiria, Luiz; Lundh, Morten; Bartelt, Alexander; Shamsi, Farnaz; Huang, Tianwen; Takahashi, Hirokazu; Hirshman, Michael F; Schlein, Christian; Lee, Alexandra; Baer, Lisa A; May, Francis J; Gao, Fei; Narain, Niven R; Chen, Emily Y; Kiebish, Michael A; Cypess, Aaron; Blüher, Matthias; Goodyear, Laurie; Hotamisligil, Gokhan; Stanford, Kristin I; Tseng, Yu-Hua
    Brown adipose tissue (BAT) and beige adipose tissue combust fuels for heat production in adult humans, and so constitute an appealing target for the treatment of metabolic disorders such as obesity, diabetes and hyperlipidemia1,2. Cold exposure can enhance energy expenditure by activating BAT, and it has been shown to improve nutrient metabolism3–5. These therapies, however, are time consuming and uncomfortable, demonstrating the need for pharmacological interventions. Recently, lipids have been identified that are released from tissues and act locally or systemically to promote insulin sensitivity and glucose tolerance; as a class, these lipids are referred to as ‘lipokines’6–8. Because BAT is a specialized metabolic tissue that takes up and burns lipids and is linked to systemic metabolic homeostasis, we hypothesized that there might be thermogenic lipokines that activate BAT in response to cold. Here we show that the lipid 12,13-dihydroxy-9Z-octadecenoic acid (12,13-diHOME) is a stimulator of BAT activity, and that its levels are negatively correlated with body-mass index and insulin sensitivity. Using a global lipidomic analysis, we found that 12,13-diHOME was increased in the circulation of humans and mice exposed to cold. Furthermore, we found that the enzymes that produce 12,13-diHOME were uniquely induced in BAT by cold stimulation. The injection of 12,13-diHOME acutely activated BAT fuel uptake and enhanced cold tolerance, which resulted in decreased levels of serum triglycerides. Mechanistically, 12,13-diHOME increased fatty acid (FA) uptake into brown adipocytes by promoting the translocation of the FA transporters FATP1 and CD36 to the cell membrane. These data suggest that 12,13-diHOME, or a functional analog, could be developed as a treatment for metabolic disorders.
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    Next-generation in vivo optical imaging with short-wave infrared quantum dots
    (Springer Nature, 2017) Bruns, Oliver T.; Bischof, Thomas S.; Harris, Daniel K.; Franke, Daniel; Shi, Yanxiang; Riedemann, Lars; Bartelt, Alexander; Jaworski, Frank B.; Carr, Jessica A.; Rowlands, Christopher J.; Wilson, Mark W. B.; Chen, Ou; Wei, He; Hwang, Gyu Weon; Montana, Daniel M.; Coropceanu, Igor; Achorn, Odin B.; Kloepper, Jonas; Heeren, Joerg; So, Peter T. C.; Fukumura, Dai; Jensen, Klavs F.; Jain, Rakesh; Bawendi, Moungi G.
    The short-wavelength infrared region (SWIR; 1000—2000 nm) provides several advantages over the visible and near-infrared regions for in vivo imaging. The general lack of autofluorescence, low light absorption by blood and tissue, and reduced scattering can render a mouse translucent when imaged in the SWIR region. Despite these advantages, the lack of a versatile emitter platform has prevented its general adoption by the biomedical research community. Here we introduce high-quality SWIR-emitting core/shell quantum dots (QDs) for the next generation of in vivo SWIR imaging. Our QDs exhibit a dramatically higher emission quantum yield (QY) than previously described SWIR probes, as well as a narrow and size-tunable emission that allows for multiplexing in the SWIR region. To demonstrate some of its capabilities, we used this imaging platform to measure the heartbeat and breathing rates in awake and unrestrained mice, as well as to quantify the metabolic turnover rates of lipoproteins in several organs simultaneously in real time in mice. Finally, we generate detailed three-dimensional quantitative flow maps of brain vasculature by intravital microscopy and visualize the differences between healthy tissue and a tumor in the brain. In conclusion, SWIR QDs enable biological optical imaging with an unprecedented combination of deep penetration, high spatial resolution, and fast acquisition speed.
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    Lrp1 in osteoblasts controls osteoclast activity and protects against osteoporosis by limiting PDGF–RANKL signaling
    (Nature Publishing Group UK, 2018) Bartelt, Alexander; Behler-Janbeck, Friederike; Beil, F. Timo; Koehne, Till; Müller, Brigitte; Schmidt, Tobias; Heine, Markus; Ochs, Laura; Yilmaz, Tayfun; Dietrich, Martin; Tuckermann, Jan P.; Amling, Michael; Herz, Joachim; Schinke, Thorsten; Heeren, Joerg; Niemeier, Andreas
    Skeletal health relies on architectural integrity and sufficient bone mass, which are maintained through a tightly regulated equilibrium of bone resorption by osteoclasts and bone formation by osteoblasts. Genetic studies have linked the gene coding for low-density lipoprotein receptor-related protein1 (Lrp1) to bone traits but whether these associations are based on a causal molecular relationship is unknown. Here, we show that Lrp1 in osteoblasts is a novel regulator of osteoclast activity and bone mass. Mice lacking Lrp1 specifically in the osteoblast lineage displayed normal osteoblast function but severe osteoporosis due to highly increased osteoclast numbers and bone resorption. Osteoblast Lrp1 limited receptor activator of NF-κB ligand (RANKL) expression in vivo and in vitro through attenuation of platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF-BB) signaling. In co-culture, Lrp1-deficient osteoblasts stimulated osteoclastogenesis in a PDGFRβ-dependent manner and in vivo treatment with the PDGFR tyrosine kinase inhibitor imatinib mesylate limited RANKL production and led to complete remission of the osteoporotic phenotype. These results identify osteoblast Lrp1 as a key regulator of osteoblast-to-osteoclast communication and bone mass through a PDGF–RANKL signaling axis in osteoblasts and open perspectives to further explore the potential of PDGF signaling inhibitors in counteracting bone loss as well as to evaluate the importance of functional LRP1 gene variants in the control of bone mass in humans.