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Leptin and UCP1 Genes are Reciprocally Regulated in Brown Adipose Tissue

Institute of Normal Human Morphology (R.C., M.C.Z., S.C.), Institute of Clinical Medicine (R.S.), Faculty of Medicine, University of Ancona, Ancona, Italy; Centre de Recherche sur l’Endocrinologie Moléculaire et le Développement (D.R.), Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Meudon, France

Address all correspondence and requests for reprints to: S. Cinti, University of Ancona, Institute of Normal Human Morphology, Faculty of Medicine, Via Tronto 10/A, Ancona 60020, Italy.

In a previous work we showed that only unilocular brown adipocytes express leptin. In order to investigate the relationship between leptin gene expression, brown adipocyte activity (UCP1) and morphology, we studied brown adipose tissues of mice (C57BL, female, 7 weeks old) acclimated at different temperatures (19°C and 28°C). Northern blot analysis revealed higher leptin and lower UCP1 mRNA levels in mice exposed to 28°C than in the group acclimated at 19°C. Also protein expression (immunohistochemistry) differed in the two groups: at 28°C brown adipocytes were positive for leptin and only weakly positive for UCP1, while at 19°C they were leptin-negative and UCP1-positive. In the former group the morphology was mainly unilocular. Our data suggest that in brown adipocytes of warm- acclimated mice leptin expression is closely related to their hypoactive functional stage, as evidenced by their low level of UPC1 synthesis and the morphological rearrangement of the lipid content (unilocularity).

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