Grant: Travel Awards - Institute Community Support

Blood vessels supply oxygen and nutrients to all tissues and organs of our body. In fat (adipose tissue), the number of small blood vessels, or capillaries, is an important determinant of the efficiency of energy storage and/or utilization. Capillaries also regulate the transport of molecules secreted by the adipose tissue that affect the whole-body metabolism. During obesity, the vessel growth does not keep pace with the adipose tissue expansion, causing disruption in the maintenance of healthy adipose tissue function. This ultimately reflects in poor health outcomes of obesity. With the alarming increase of global obesity, it is crucial to understand which genes are involved in the development of obesity-induced deleterious effects, in order to develop new target therapeutic approaches. We and others have shown that high fat diet-induced obesity deregulates genes in capillaries that are associated with the impairment of blood vessel growth. In this project, we will test how the deregulation of the gene Forkhead Box O1 in the capillaries affects the development of obesity. We also will evaluate the effects of this disruption on the function of the adipose tissue. To do this, we will assess the development of obesity in mice lacking the gene Forkhead Box O1 in their endothelial cells. Also, endothelial cells (the main cell in capillaries) will be cultured in the absence or presence of adipocytes (the main cell from the adipose tissue) to help us to understand the cellular signals between those cells in obesity. Our research will unravel new details of how the capillaries contribute to the significant metabolic problems that are prevalent in obese individuals. Importantly, our research will also evaluate if the results of this study can be translated into therapeutic concepts.