Molecular and cellular biochemistry
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Mol. Cell. Biochem. · Apr 2016
Proteomic identification of fat-browning markers in cultured white adipocytes treated with curcumin.
We previously reported that curcumin induces browning of primary white adipocytes via enhanced expression of brown adipocyte-specific genes. In this study, we attempted to identify target proteins responsible for this fat-browning effect by analyzing proteomic changes in cultured white adipocytes in response to curcumin treatment. To elucidate the role of curcumin in fat-browning, we conducted comparative proteomic analysis of primary adipocytes between control and curcumin-treated cells using two-dimensional electrophoresis combined with MALDI-TOF-MS. ⋯ One of the most striking findings is that hormone-sensitive lipase (HSL) was highly correlated with main browning markers based on the STRING database. HSL and two browning markers (UCP1, PGC-1α) were co-immunoprecipitated with these markers, suggesting that HSL possibly plays a role in fat-browning of white adipocytes. Our results suggest that curcumin increased HSL levels and other browning-specific markers, suggesting its possible role in augmentation of lipolysis and suppression of lipogenesis by trans-differentiation from white adipocytes into brown adipocytes (beige).