ReviewNature reviews. Endocrinology2018
Targeting thermogenesis in brown fat and muscle to treat obesity and metabolic disease.
Review in Nature reviews. Endocrinology, 2018. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 198 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
198 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 343 citations in OpenAlex.
- Activation of Human Brown Adipose Tissue by Capsinoids, Catechins, Ephedrine, and Other Dietary Components: A Systematic Review.Advances in nutrition (Bethesda, Md.) · 2019Pooled it
- Effects of Whole-Body Cryotherapy Combined With Conventional Obesity Management Versus Obesity Management Alone: A Clinical Trial.Obesity (Silver Spring, Md.) · 2025Trial
- Relationship between the Daily Rhythm of Distal Skin Temperature and Brown Adipose TissueJournal of biological rhythms · 2019Trial
- The role and mechanism of UPRmt in adipocytes.Adipocyte · 2026Review
- Pharmacological inhibition of CLPP stabilizes LETMD1 to boost thermogenesis and alleviate obesity.Adipocyte · 2026Article
- Brown Adipose Tissue: Molecular Mechanisms of Regulation, Physiological Functions, and Therapeutic Targets.MedComm · 2026Review
- Brown fat protects against hepatic oxidative stress by remodeling the circulating metabolome.Cell metabolism · 2026Article
- Housing at 27 °C, a Near-Thermoneutral Temperature, Exacerbates Metabolic Dysfunction-Associated Steatohepatitis in C57BL/6J Mice.International journal of molecular sciences · 2026Article
- Dysfunctional adipose tissue-lymphatic crosstalk in obesity.Nature reviews. Endocrinology · 2026Review
- Roux-en-Y gastric bypass promotes white adipose tissue browning and systemic metabolic recovery in obese type 2 diabetic mice.BMC endocrine disorders · 2026Article
- Iron overload in steatotic hepatocytes drives systemic metabolic dysfunction via alterations in hepatokine production.The Journal of clinical investigation · 2026Article
- Cold exposure and metabolic health: Therapeutic potential for obesity, diabetes, and beyond.Physiological reports · 2026Review
- The complexity of the relationship between thyroid disease and body weight.Nature reviews. Endocrinology · 2026Review
- The epigenetic role of ADRB3 DNA methylation in post-bariatric energy expenditure for women with obesity: a longitudinal observational study.Scientific reports · 2026Observational
- Palmitic acid induces UCP1-independent mitochondrial depolarization specifically in brown adipose tissue.The Journal of biological chemistry · 2026Article
- A paraventricular hypothalamic control of social stress susceptibility by targeting brown adipose tissue β3 adrenoceptor.Communications biology · 2026Article
- Review
- Bioactive Phytoconstituents Targeting Energy Expenditure and Appetite to Combat Obesity: A Comprehensive Review.Current nutrition reports · 2026Review
- Duration-dependent gut microbiota disruption drives opposing effects on adipose thermogenesis in obese mice.Frontiers in microbiology · 2026Article
- Article
138 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
2 authors at 2 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Brown fat is emerging as an interesting and promising target for therapeutic intervention in obesity and metabolic disease. Activation of brown fat in humans is associated with marked improvement in metabolic parameters such as levels of free fatty acids and insulin sensitivity. Skeletal muscle is another important organ for thermogenesis, with the capacity to induce energy-consuming futile cycles. In this Review, we focus on how these two major thermogenic organs - brown fat and muscle - act and cooperate to maintain normal body temperature. Moreover, in the light of disease-relevant mechanisms, we explore the molecular pathways that regulate thermogenesis in brown fat and muscle. Brown adipocytes possess a unique cellular mechanism to convert chemical energy into heat: uncoupling protein 1 (UCP1), which can short-circuit the mitochondrial proton gradient. However, recent research demonstrates the existence of several other energy-expending 'futile' cycles in both adipocytes and muscle, such as creatine and calcium cycling. These mechanisms can complement or even substitute for UCP1-mediated thermogenesis. Moreover, they expand our view of cold-induced thermogenesis from a special feature of brown adipocytes to a more general physiological principle. Finally, we discuss how thermogenic mechanisms can be exploited to expend energy and hence offer new therapeutic opportunities.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.