How do glucocorticoids regulate brown adipose tissue activity?
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Transcriptional regulation of human brown adipose tissue activation by glucocorticoids.
IRAS ID
198744
Contact name
Roland H Stimson
Contact email
Duration of Study in the UK
1 years, 0 months, 1 days
Research summary
The recent discovery of brown adipose tissue (BAT) in humans has led to the idea of activating this tissue as a novel approach to increase energy expenditure to treat obesity. However, very little is known about how this tissue is regulated in humans. We have recently determined that glucocorticoids alter BAT activity in humans and we now plan to determine how this effect is mediated. We will recruit patients who are due to undergo elective neck surgery in the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh and randomise them to receive either placebo or the synthetic glucocorticoid prednisolone prior to attending for their surgery. We will collect some blood samples immediately prior to their operation and obtain a small sample of their brown adipose tissue from their neck during their operation. This fat tissue will be used to determine how their BAT has been regulated by glucocorticoids. This research is funded by the Medical Research Council.
REC name
South East Scotland REC 02
REC reference
16/SS/0073
Date of REC Opinion
29 Apr 2016
REC opinion
Favourable Opinion