Helmholtz Diabetes Center Institute for Diabetes and Obesity (IDO)
The IDO investigates the diseases of the metabolic syndrome by means of systems biological and translational approaches on the basis of cellular systems, genetically modified mouse models and clinical intervention studies.
The IDO investigates the diseases of the metabolic syndrome by means of systems biological and translational approaches on the basis of cellular systems, genetically modified mouse models and clinical intervention studies.
Our staff
Institute: Scientists at IDO
Recent Publication Highlights
See all2022 Nat Metab.
Astroglial clean-up of satiety synapses
Until now, the BDNF–TrkB signalling pathway was thought to be exclusively regulated by neurons. Ameroso et al. show that astrocytic TrkB.T1 is a critical substrate of BDNF in the regulation of energy balance and that its defective signalling in hypothalamic circuits leads to obesity.
2022 Nature Metabolism
GLP-1-mediated delivery of tesaglitazar improves obesity and glucose metabolism in male mice
Dual agonists activating the peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors alpha and gamma (PPARɑ/ɣ) have beneficial effects on glucose and lipid metabolism in patients with type 2 diabetes, but their development was discontinued due to potential adverse effects. Here we report the design and preclinical evaluation of a molecule that covalently links the PPARɑ/ɣ dual-agonist tesaglitazar to a GLP-1 receptor agonist (GLP-1RA) to allow for GLP-1R-dependent cellular delivery of tesaglitazar. GLP-1RA/tesaglitazar does not differ from the pharmacokinetically matched GLP-1RA in GLP-1R signalling, but shows GLP-1R-dependent PPARɣ-retinoic acid receptor heterodimerization and enhanced improvements of body weight, food intake and glucose metabolism relative to the GLP-1RA or tesaglitazar alone in obese male mice. The conjugate fails to affect body weight and glucose metabolism in GLP-1R knockout mice and shows preserved effects in obese mice at subthreshold doses for the GLP-1RA and tesaglitazar. Liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry-based proteomics identified PPAR regulated proteins in the hypothalamus that are acutely upregulated by GLP-1RA/tesaglitazar. Our data show that GLP-1RA/tesaglitazar improves glucose control with superior efficacy to the GLP-1RA or tesaglitazar alone and suggest that this conjugate might hold therapeutic value to acutely treat hyperglycaemia and insulin resistance.
2022 Nature Reviews Drug Discovery
Anti-obesity drug discovery: advances and challenges
Enormous progress has been made in the last half-century in the management of diseases closely integrated with excess body weight, such as hypertension, adult-onset diabetes and elevated cholesterol. However, the treatment of obesity itself has proven largely resistant to therapy, with anti-obesity medications (AOMs) often delivering insufficient efficacy and dubious safety. Here, we provide an overview of the history of AOM development, focusing on lessons learned and ongoing obstacles. Recent advances, including increased understanding of the molecular gut-brain communication, are inspiring the pursuit of next-generation AOMs that appear capable of safely achieving sizeable and sustained body weight loss.
2022 Allergy
Differential effects of lung inflammation on insulin resistance in humans and mice
Background: The rates of obesity, its associated diseases, and allergies are raising at alarming rates in most countries. House dust mites (HDM) are highly allergenic and exposure often associates with an urban sedentary indoor lifestyle, also resulting in obesity. The aim of this study was to investigate the epidemiological association and physiological impact of lung inflammation on obesity and glucose homeostasis. Methods: Epidemiological data from 2207 adults of the population-based KORA FF4 cohort were used to test associations between asthma and rhinitis with metrics of body weight and insulin sensitivity. To obtain functional insights, C57BL/6J mice were intranasally sensitized and challenged with HDM and simultaneously fed with either low-fat or high-fat diet for 12 weeks followed by a detailed metabolic and biochemical phenotyping of the lung, liver, and adipose tissues. Results: We found a direct association of asthma with insulin resistance but not body weight in humans. In mice, co-development of obesity and HDM-induced lung inflammation attenuated inflammation in lung and perigonadal fat, with little impact on body weight, but small shifts in the composition of gut microbiota. Exposure to HDM improved glucose tolerance, reduced hepatosteatosis, and increased energy expenditure and basal metabolic rate. These effects associate with increased activity of thermogenic adipose tissues independent of uncoupling protein 1. Conclusions: Asthma associates with insulin resistance in humans, but HDM challenge results in opposing effects on glucose homeostasis in mice due to increased energy expenditure, reduced adipose inflammation, and hepatosteatosis. Keywords: allergy; house dust mites; inflammation; insulin sensitivity; obesity.
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