THE ROLE OF PURINERGIC SIGNALING AND METABOLISM: "Effect of a new inhibitor of adenosine kinase (ADK) in murine and human adipocyte and in energy metabolism of obese mice"

• Grant number: 17/10058-7
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships abroad - Research Internship - Post-doctor
• Start date: September 01, 2017
• End date: August 31, 2018
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Physiology - General Physiology
• Principal Investigator: Mario Jose Abdalla Saad
• Grantee: Rafael Ludemann Camargo
• Supervisor: Alexander Pfeifer
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Ciências Médicas (FCM). Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP). Campinas , SP, Brazil
• Institution abroad: Universität Bonn, Germany
• Associated to the scholarship: 16/05312-9 - Effect of a new inhibitor of adenosine kinase (ADK) in energetic metabolism in obese mice, BP.PD

Abstract

Obesity has become a worldwide pandemic and is characterized by an energy imbalance in favor of the energy accumulation by white adipose tissue (WAT). Obesity is a risk factor for several diseases. The main role of WAT is to accumulate energy as fat, on the other hand, the brown adipose tissue (BAT) contributes to the energy expenditure by heat production. The activation of the thermogenic protein UCP1 in the BAT, uncouple the oxidative phosphorylation, dissipating energy as heat. The BAT is considered an important target in the weight loss battle. Although there are many drugs to combat obesity and metabolic diseases, several studies have been carried out in order to bring new therapies for the prevention and treatment of obesity. In this scenario, recent studies have demonstrated the role of adenosine as an important signaling molecule in tissues related to energy expenditure. The adenosine kinase (ADK) is one of the key enzymes in the metabolism of adenosine. The adenosine signaling has been associated with an improvement in the inflammatory process and energy homeostasis in rodents obese model. Recent studies indicate adenosine as an important signaling molecule in the BAT, promoting greater energy expenditure. Moreover, adenosine may also participate in the differentiation of WAT to BAT. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to investigate the new pharmacological inhibitor of the ADK enzyme in energy metabolism of obese mice, with the focus on in vitro study of human and murine adipocytes. This inhibitor may be a new ally for the treatment of obesity, acting on energy expenditure.