Regulation of subcutaneous adipose tissue blood flow is related to measures of vascular and autonomic function

Jun-Ichi Funada , a Louise Dennis , Rachel Roberts , Fredrik Karpe , Keith Frayn (1)

1 OCDEM - Oxford Centre for Diabetes, Endocrinology and Metabolism

Appropriate blood vessel function is important to cardiovascular health. Adipose tissue plays an important role in metabolic homeostasis. Subcutaneous abdominal ATBF (adipose tissue blood flow) is responsive to nutritional stimuli. This response is impaired in obesity, suggesting parallels with endothelial function. We assessed whether regulation of ATBF is related to the regulation of endothelial function, assessed by FMD (flow-mediated vasodilatation) of the brachial artery. Impaired FMD is a marker of atherosclerotic risk so we also assessed relationships between ATBF and a marker of atherosclerosis, common carotid artery IMT (intima-media thickness). Since ATBF is responsive to sympatho-adrenal stimuli we also investigated relationships to HRV (heart rate variability). Seventy-nine healthy volunteers (44 female) were studied fasting and after ingestion of 75 g glucose. FMD, fasting ATBF and the responsiveness of ATBF to glucose were all negatively related to BMI, confirming the adverse cardiovascular effects of adiposity. FMD was related to fasting ATBF (rs = 0.32, P = 0.008) and, at least in males, this relationship was independent of BMI (P = 0.02). Common carotid artery IMT, measured in a subset of participants, was negatively related to fasting ATBF (rs = -0.51, P = 0.02, n = 20). On the other hand, ATBF responsiveness to glucose showed no relation with either FMD or IMT. In multiple regression models, both fasting and stimulated ATBF showed relationships with HRV. Our data show that the regulation of ATBF has features in common with endothelial function, but also relationships with autonomic cardiovascular control as reflected in HRV.

Mots clés: Medicine

Jun-Ichi Funada, a Louise Dennis, Rachel Roberts, Fredrik Karpe, Keith Frayn. Regulation of subcutaneous adipose tissue blood flow is related to measures of vascular and autonomic function. Clinical Science, 2010, 119 (8), pp.313-322. ⟨10.1042/CS20100066⟩. ⟨hal-00606283⟩