Study of the adipokine Omentin 1 in macrophage polarization - a relationship with diabetes

• Grant number: 24/20712-0
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: May 01, 2025
• End date: April 30, 2026
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Biochemistry - Metabolism and Bioenergetics
• Principal Investigator: Cynthia Aparecida de Castro
• Grantee: Thainá Teixeira Dias
• Host Institution: Centro de Ciências Biológicas e da Saúde (CCBS). Universidade Federal de São Carlos (UFSCAR). São Carlos , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Studies in the area of ¿¿inflammation and metabolism have linked the development of obesity and diabetes with an increase in pro-inflammatory markers, characterizing a picture of low-grade chronic inflammation with a pro-inflammatory Th1 response. Scientific advances have directed research to assess the imbalance in the proportion of M1/M2 macrophages, with increased "pro-inflammatory" M1 macrophages compared to "anti-inflammatory" M2 macrophages, leading to chronic inflammation and the spread of metabolic dysfunction. Thus, the study of immunomodulatory molecules has become a path for the search for the development of immunotherapies to alleviate the symptoms of diabetes and improve insulin resistance. Adipokines, hormones derived from adipocytes, have emerged as a significant participant in glucose metabolism and insulin sensitivity, which can affect the composition of immune cells present in tissues, attenuating inflammation and improving glucose tolerance. Omentin is a recently discovered adipokine that has been linked to diabetes and other metabolic disorders, but little is known about its immunomodulatory mechanisms, especially in the macrophage polarization pathway. With this in mind, this study aims to evaluate the action of Omentin 1 on macrophage polarization, a central mechanism in the immunomodulation characteristic of chronic degenerative diseases such as type 2 diabetes.