Expression of obesity- and type-2 diabetes-associated genes in omental adipose tissue of individuals with obesity

Gene. 2022 Mar 20:815:146181. doi: 10.1016/j.gene.2021.146181. Epub 2022 Jan 4.

Abstract

Aims: Obesity and type 2 diabetes mellitus are two pathologies that share metabolic abnormalities in most of the cases; however, there are differences as well. Some studies have reported that approximately 30% of obese patients have normal glucose and lipid levels in blood despite an accumulation of abdominal adipose tissue. Here, we compare the gene expression in adipose tissue of several genes associated with obesity and/or diabetes between obese patients without T2D and obese patients with T2D.

Methods: Omental adipose tissue was collected during the patients elective bariatric surgery. Gene expression was determined by real-time PCR. Phenotypic variables were correlated with gene expression and 2^-ΔΔCt relative expression analysis between groups was performed.

Results: The stronger correlations in the obese without T2D or reference group was between ICAM1 and HbA1c; HP and TC and LDL while in the obese with diabetes or case group the correlation occurred between CSF1 and BMI. A correlation between HP and TC was found in the case group as well. The expression of VEGFA, CCND2, IL1R1 and PTEN was downregulated in the obese with T2D group.

Conclusions: This study identified genes whose expression is different between obese subjects with and without diabetes. Those genes are related to inflammation, cholesterol transport, adipocyte differentiation/expansion and browning.

Keywords: Adipocyte browning; Adipocyte differentiation; Cholesterol transport; GWAS; Inflammation; Metabolically healthy obese.

MeSH terms

  • Adipose Tissue / physiology*
  • Adult
  • Bariatric Surgery
  • Cyclin D2 / genetics
  • Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 / genetics*
  • Female
  • Gene Expression
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Middle Aged
  • Obesity / genetics*
  • Obesity / surgery
  • PTEN Phosphohydrolase / genetics
  • Phenotype
  • Receptors, Interleukin-1 Type I / genetics
  • Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor A / genetics

Substances

  • CCND2 protein, human
  • Cyclin D2
  • IL1R1 protein, human
  • Receptors, Interleukin-1 Type I
  • VEGFA protein, human
  • Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor A
  • PTEN Phosphohydrolase
  • PTEN protein, human