Figure 2.

Heart and Adipose Tissue Crosstalk: Key Messengers. Cardiokines: stimuli such as cardiac ischemia, reperfusion, oxidative and hemodynamic stress stimulate the production of cardiokines, which signaling in an endocrine and paracrine mechanism to the adipose tissue promoting weight loss by increasing thermogenesis and both the release and oxidation of fatty acids. Adipose tissue dysfunction is a stimulus for miRNAs release, which travel through the bloodstream to the myocardial tissue inside exosomes, exerting cardioprotective against myocardial infarction, coronary artery disease and atrial fibrillation. On the other hand, obesity, IR and cardiovascular diseases decrease BCAAs oxidation in adipose tissue, which decreases autophagy with heart hypertrophy and, finally, the alteration of the bioenergetic homeostasis of the heart. FA, Fatty Acids; AT, Adipose Tissue; CV, Cardiovascular; IR, Insulin resistance.