What difficulties physicians, is the size of fat tissue in the abdomen– or visceral adipose tissue, to be technical. Strong expansion of this tissue is associated with an inflammatory immune reaction that includes the whole body and hence increases the risk of secondary illness. Visceral adipose tissue plays an essential role in these procedures: Here immune cells can organize themselves into lymphoid structures and initiate immune reactions that hinder the persons metabolism.
” After just three weeks of a high-fat, high-caloric diet, we see changes in the molecular procedures that control the body immune system and the metabolic process in the organism.”– Dr. Susanne Stutte
Diet plan is crucial
A group of researchers at LMU has actually now examined the molecular procedures that influence this so-called immunometabolism. They discovered that diet plays a definitive role: “After just 3 weeks of a high-fat, high-caloric diet plan, we see modifications in the molecular processes that control the immune system and the metabolic process in the organism,” explains Dr. Susanne Stutte from the Biomedical Center Munich and lead author of the research study. Excess food energy is stored in adipose tissue, such as visceral fat, which lies in the abdominal area and in between the internal organs. Everyone has this visceral fat, a diet plan that is especially high in calories triggers its growth and presents a threat to health.
With the consistent development of visceral fat, immunological processes end up being out of balance, as the researchers have actually been able to demonstrate: a specific type of immune cells understood as plasmacytoid dendritic cells (pDCs) builds up in the visceral adipose tissue. “Tertiary lymphoid tissue begins to form, in which pDCs orchestrate the body immune system and affect the metabolism,” describes Stutte.
Vasculature in murine visceral fat (red: blood vessels, green: pDCs, blue: hematopoietic cells). Credit: LMU
Chronic inflammation
When the fat expands, these structures form at a growing rate. Now pDCs intervene acutely in the metabolic process, producing a metabolic syndrome as the pDCs in the visceral fat are in continuous state of alert.
” pDCs typically represent the very first barrier in the case of a viral infection, to which they respond by launching a messenger (type-I interferon) that instructs the body immune system,” explains Professor Barbara Walzog from the Walter Brendel Center of Experimental Medicine at LMU and head of the Collaborative Research Center SFB 914 “Trafficking of Immune Cells in Inflammation, Development and Disease.”
When inflammatory markers increase, the metabolism thwarts and the metabolic syndrome occurs. “When the migration of pDCs into the fat is blocked, weight gain is decreased and the metabolic condition enhances,” reports Stutte.
Molecular maps
The research study was performed in collaboration with Harvard Medical School, and in the opinion of the scientists, the results might contribute to the development of new methods towards a therapeutic intervention in metabolic diseases. The migration of the pDCs into the fat follows exact molecular patterns, which can be conceived of as maps. “If we might stop pDC migration into the fat, for example, we may be able to avoid the resulting secondary diseases also,” explains Walzog.
Referral: “High-Fat Diet Rapidly Modifies Trafficking, Phenotype, and Function of Plasmacytoid Dendritic Cells in Adipose Tissue” by Susanne Stutte, Hellen Ishikawa-Ankerhold, Lydia Lynch, Sarah Eickhoff, Simona Nasiscionyte, Chenglong Guo, Dominic van den Heuvel, Daniel Setzensack, Marco Colonna, Daniela Maier-Begandt, Ludwig Weckbach, Thomas Brocker, Christian Schulz, Barbara Walzog and Ulrich von Andrian, 15 March 2022, The Journal of Immunology.DOI: 10.4049/ jimmunol.2100022.
What problems doctors, is the size of fat tissue in the abdominal areas– or visceral adipose tissue, to be technical. Strong expansion of this tissue is associated with an inflammatory immune reaction that includes the whole body and therefore increases the threat of secondary diseases. Visceral adipose tissue plays an important function in these procedures: Here immune cells can organize themselves into lymphoid structures and initiate immune actions that derail the individuals metabolic process.
They found that diet plays a decisive function: “After only 3 weeks of a high-fat, high-caloric diet plan, we see changes in the molecular processes that manage the immune system and the metabolism in the organism,” explains Dr. Susanne Stutte from the Biomedical Center Munich and lead author of the study. Excess food energy is saved in adipose tissue, such as visceral fat, which is situated in the abdominal area and between the internal organs.
Obesity: A Dangerous Immune Response
An unhealthy diet plan leads to fatal activation of immune cells. A team of scientists from LMU, in partnership with the Harvard Medical School in Boston, has actually discovered new molecular influences.
Overweight and obesity are among the biggest health difficulties of the 21st century, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). Nearly 60 percent of Germans are considered obese, while 25 percent are obese. Being overweight typically triggers serious secondary diseases such as heart, arteriosclerosis, or diabetes attacks.