Obesity is a major contributing factor to several diseases, including type 2 diabetes, dyslipidemias and cardiovascular disease. Obesity is caused by an excess of caloric intake compared to energy expenditure. Thus, elucidation of the mechanisms that regulate energy expenditure may lead to novel and safe approaches for treating obesity and associated diseases. The family of estrogen-related receptors (ERR?, ERR? and ERR?) regulates energy homeostasis pathways. Notably, mice lacking ERR? may lead to novel and safe approaches for treating obesity and associated diseases. are lean and resistant to diet-induced obesity. As members of the nuclear receptor family, ERRs have pockets that accommodate synthetic ligands and can thus be targeted therapeutically. In support of this notion, a ligand that inhibits ERR? has been reported to decrease adiposity and increase insulin sensitivity in mice. However, the mechanisms by which loss or inhibition of ERR? results into protection from obesity are not known. Moreover, the specific roles of the different ERRs in adipose tissue are far from understood and appear surprisingly diverse, with ERR?, ERR? and ERR? activating similarly many genes that support mitochondrial oxidative capacity, but working antagonistically at others. In the proposed work, we will elucidate the specific functions and relative contributions of ERR?, ERR? and ERR?, and of the novel ERR coregulator Gadd45? to energy homeostasis. We will use genetically modified mice and primary cultures derived from such mice to elucidate shared and unique roles of the different ERR isoforms in primary adipocytes and in adipose tissues in vivo. We will also test the extent to which the ERR coregulator Gadd45? regulates adaptive responses in brown adipose tissue. We expect our studies to elucidate how ERRs affect whole body energy balance, and establish their potential as targets for small molecules that could benefit patients with obesity and obesity related diseases.

Public Health Relevance

Obesity and obesity-related diseases, such as Type 2 diabetes, dyslipidemia and cardiovascular disease are increasing at an alarming rate world-wide. The proposed research will elucidate mechanisms that regulate energy expenditure in the adipose tissue, and may therefore lead to safe approaches for treating obesity and obesity-related diseases.

Agency
National Institute of Health (NIH)
Institute
National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK)
Type
Research Project (R01)
Project #
5R01DK095686-03
Application #
8708064
Study Section
Special Emphasis Panel (ZRG1)
Program Officer
Margolis, Ronald N
Project Start
2012-08-20
Project End
2016-07-31
Budget Start
2014-08-01
Budget End
2015-07-31
Support Year
3
Fiscal Year
2014
Total Cost
Indirect Cost
Name
Scripps Research Institute
Department
Type
DUNS #
City
La Jolla
State
CA
Country
United States
Zip Code
92037
Brown, Erin L; Hazen, Bethany C; Eury, Elodie et al. (2018) Estrogen-Related Receptors Mediate the Adaptive Response of Brown Adipose Tissue to Adrenergic Stimulation. iScience 2:221-237
Cho, Yoshitake; Hazen, Bethany C; Gandra, Paulo G et al. (2016) Perm1 enhances mitochondrial biogenesis, oxidative capacity, and fatigue resistance in adult skeletal muscle. FASEB J 30:674-87
Gantner, Marin L; Hazen, Bethany C; Eury, Elodie et al. (2016) Complementary Roles of Estrogen-Related Receptors in Brown Adipocyte Thermogenic Function. Endocrinology 157:4770-4781
Gantner, Marin L; Hazen, Bethany C; Conkright, Juliana et al. (2014) GADD45? regulates the thermogenic capacity of brown adipose tissue. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 111:11870-5
Cho, Yoshitake; Hazen, Bethany C; Russell, Aaron P et al. (2013) Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor ? coactivator 1 (PGC-1)- and estrogen-related receptor (ERR)-induced regulator in muscle 1 (Perm1) is a tissue-specific regulator of oxidative capacity in skeletal muscle cells. J Biol Chem 288:25207-18
Foletta, Victoria C; Brown, Erin L; Cho, Yoshitake et al. (2013) Ndrg2 is a PGC-1?/ERR? target gene that controls protein synthesis and expression of contractile-type genes in C2C12 myotubes. Biochim Biophys Acta 1833:3112-3123
Enguix, Natàlia; Pardo, Rosario; González, Agustí et al. (2013) Mice lacking PGC-1? in adipose tissues reveal a dissociation between mitochondrial dysfunction and insulin resistance. Mol Metab 2:215-26
Gan, Zhenji; Rumsey, John; Hazen, Bethany C et al. (2013) Nuclear receptor/microRNA circuitry links muscle fiber type to energy metabolism. J Clin Invest 123:2564-75