Investigating the role of apelin on brown adipogenesis

Recently, the thermogenic activity of brown adipose tissue has become a research focus, which may provide a promising method of obesity treatment. Adipose tissue is not only a fat depot which stores excess energy, but also functions as an endocrine organ which secrets hormones to interact with surrounding tissues and organs to maintain energy and glucose homeostasis. In the present study, we investigated one of the adipokines-- apelin, focused on its impact on brown adipogenesis. We also studied the regulatory effect of apelin under the suppression effect of macrophage, in particular, under its secretion TNFα. We demonstrated that apelin can counteract with macrophage by increasing brown adipogenesis, as well as promoting mitochondrial biogenesis to increase the expenditure of excess energy. This study suggests that the autocrine signaling of apelin may serve as a novel therapeutic target for obesity, as well as other obesity-induced metabolic disorders such as type II diabetes.Bachelor of Engineering (Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering