Table 4.
SCFAs promote adipogenesis and browning of adipose tissue.
| Experimental Design | Cell or Tissue Type | Outcome | Study |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5 mM butyrate for up to 7 days. | 3T3-L1 | ↑ Adipogenesis ↑ Lipid droplets ↑ LPL, aP2 mRNA expression |
Toscani et al. 1990 [153] |
| 0.1–1.5 mM butyrate for up to 9 days. | Porcine stromal vascular | ↑ adipogenesis ↑ C/EBPα/β, PPAR-γ, SREBP-1c mRNA |
Yan et al. 2015 [54] |
| 0.1–3 mM butyrate and propionate on day 10 of differentiation. | Porcine stromal vascular | ↑ Adipogenesis ↑ C/EBPα/β, PPAR-γ mRNA |
Li et al. 2014 [50] |
| 6.4 mM acetate, 3.2 mM propionate, 0.8 mM butyrate for 10 days. | 3T3-L1 | ↑ Adipogenesis ↑ FAS, FATP4, aP2, LPL mRNA |
Yu et al. 2018 [154] |
| 0.1 μmol/L acetate for 7 days. | 3T3-L1 | ↑ Adipogenesis ↑ PPAR-γ2 mRNA |
Hong et al. 2005 [78] |
| 8 mM propionate and butyrate ~11 days. | SGBS | No effects on adipogenesis or adipogenic markers | Alex et al. 2013 [155] |
| 0.01–0.1 mM propionate for 8 days. | Broiler adipocytes | No effects on adipogenesis ↓ aP2, PPAR-γ mRNA |
Li et al. 2021 [156] |
| Plasma acetate measurement | SAT and VAT adipose tissue | ↑ Browning adipogenesis ↑ PRDM 16, UCP1, DIO2 mRNA |
Moreno-Navarrete et al. 2018 [146] |
| 10 mM acetate for up to 7 days. | IM-BAT | ↑ Browning adipogenesis ↑ Mitochondrial biogenesis ↑ PGC-1α, PPAR-γ, aP2, UCP-1 mRNA |
Hu et al. 2016 [84] |
| 1 mM acetate 0.6% acetate in drinking water for 16 weeks. |
3T3-L1 KK-Ay mice |
↑ Browning adipogenesis ↑ CIDEA, TMEM26, TBX1, FABP4, PPAR-γ, PRDM16, UCP-1, DIO2 mRNA |
Hanatani et al. 2016 [51] |
| 5% wt wt−1 acetate, propionate, butyrate or mixture SCFA supplemented (3:1:1 ratio) in high-fat diet for 16 weeks. | C57Bl/6J mice | ↑ Browning adipogenesis ↑ PGC-1α, NRF-1, Tfam, β-F1 ATPase, COX IV, cyt-c |
Lu et al. 2016 [17] |
Relevant studies were identified using PubMed query searches for “short-chain fatty acids” OR “acetate” OR “propionate” OR “butyrate” AND “adipocyte” OR “3T3-L1” AND “adipogenesis” OR “browning”. Eleven studies examining the effects of SCFAs on adipocyte adipogenesis and/or browning were thus identified. Abbreviations—aP2: adipocyte fatty-acid-binding protein; β-F1: b subunit of the mitochondrial H+- ATP synthase; C/EBPα/β: CCAAT- enhancer-binding proteins; CIDEA: cell-death-inducing DNA fragmentation factor-α-like effector A; COX IV: cytochrome c oxidase IV; cyt-c: cytochrome c somatic; SGBS: human Simpson–Golabi–Behmel syndrome cells; DIO2: iodothyrinine deiodinase 2; FAS: fatty acid synthase; FATP4: fatty acid transporter protein 4; LPL: lipoprotein lipase; NRF: nuclear respiratory factor 1; PPAR-γ: peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma; PRDM16: PR domain containing 16; SREBP-1c: sterol regulatory element-binding protein 1c; TBX1: T-box transcription factor 1; Tfam: mitochondrial transcription factor A; TMEM26: transmembrane protein 26; UCP1: uncoupling protein; SAT: subcutaneous adipose tissue; VAT: visceral adipose tissue; IM-BAT: immortalized brown adipocyte cells. ↑: increased; ↓: decreased.