Impaired insulin action in subcutaneous adipocytes from women with visceral obesity

Julia A. Johnson, Susan K. Fried, F. Xavier Pi-Sunyer, Jeanine B. Albu

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

76 Scopus citations

Abstract

Visceral obesity is associated with resistance to the antilipolytic effect of insulin in vivo. We investigated whether subcutaneous abdominal and gluteal adipocytes from viscerally obese women exhibit insulin resistance in vitro. Subjects were obese black and white premenopausal nondiabetic women matched for visceral adipose tissue (VAT), total adiposity, and age. Independently of race and adipocyte size, increased VAT was associated with decreased sensitivity to insulin's antilipolytic effect in subcutaneous abdominal and gluteal adipocytes. Absolute lipolytic rates at physiologically relevant concentrations of insulin or the adenosine receptor agonist N6-(phenylisopropyl)adenosine were higher in subjects with the highest vs. lowest VAT area. Independently of cell size, abdominal adipocytes were less sensitive to the antilipolytic effect of insulin than gluteal adipocytes, which may partly explain increased nonesterified fatty acid fluxes in upper vs. lower body obese women. Moreover, increased VAT was associated with decreased responsiveness, but not decreased sensitivity, to insulin's stimulatory effect on glucose transport in abdominal adipocytes. These data suggest that insulin resistance of subcutaneous abdominal and, to a lesser extent, gluteal adipocytes may contribute to increased systemic lipolysis in both black and white viscerally obese women.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)E40-E49
JournalAmerican Journal of Physiology - Endocrinology and Metabolism
Volume280
Issue number1 43-1
DOIs
StatePublished - 2001
Externally publishedYes

Keywords

  • Abdominal and gluteal adipocytes
  • Adipose tissue
  • Glucose transport
  • Lipolysis

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