Berberine modulates deacetylation of PPARγ to promote adipose tissue remodeling and thermogenesis via AMPK/SIRT1 pathway
Yingxi Xu, Tianhao Yu, Guojing Ma, Lixia Zheng, Xuehan Jiang, Fan Yang, Zhuo Wang, Na Li, Zheng He, Xiaoyu Song, Deliang Wen, Juan Kong, Yang Yu, Liu Cao
Abstract
Pharmacological stimulation of adipose tissue remodeling and thermogenesis to increase energy expenditure is expected to be a viable therapeutic strategy for obesity. Berberine has been reported to have pharmacological activity in adipose tissue to anti-obesity, while the mechanism remains unclear. Here, we observed that berberine significantly reduced the body weight and insulin resistance of high-fat diet mice by promoting the distribution of brown adipose tissue and thermogenesis. We have further demonstrated that berberine activated energy metabolic sensing pathway AMPK/SIRT1 axis to increase the level of PPARγ deacetylation, which leads to promoting adipose tissue remodeling and increasing the expression of the thermogenic protein UCP-1. These findings suggest that berberine that enhances the AMPK/SIRT1 pathway can act as a selective PPARγ activator to promote adipose tissue remodeling and thermogenesis. This study proposes a new mechanism for the regulation of berberine in adipose tissue and offers a great prospect for berberine in obesity treatment.