Executive functions of obese adolescents / 中国学校卫生

Objective@#To explore of executive function in obese adolescents, so as to provide a reference for executive function enhancement intervention in obese adolescents.@*Methods@#A convenience sample of 1 227 adolescents aged 13-18 years was selected from 2 secondary schools in Taiyuan City during March-April 2023. The Flanker task, N-back task and More odd shifting task was used to compare the different subfunctions of executive function (refreshing function, shifting function, inhibiting function) of 61 obese adolescents and 70 normal weight adolescents. Independent samples t-tests was used for between group comparisons and Cohen s d -tests was used to calculate between group differences in executive function between the two groups of adolescents.@*Results@#Compared with the group of normal weight, time responses of the inhibitory function [(29.73±19.55)ms], the refreshing function [1-back: (1 088.75±275.76)ms, 2-back:( 1 285.44± 355.16)ms] and the shifting function [(380.34±153.18) ms] in the obese group were significantly longer than those in the normal weight group [(14.86±20.27, 888.38±286.57, 1 126.20± 287.43 , 323.12±134.71) ms] ( t =4.26, 4.06, 1.92,2.26, P < 0.05 ); inhibitory function (0.91±0.09) and 1-back (0.73±0.24) were also significantly less correct than in the normal weight group (0.94±0.05, 0.83±0.21) ( t =-2.04, -2.04, P <0.05). Obese adolescents showed moderate adverse effect sizes in the inhibition function ( d =0.746,0.712) and the refresh function 1-back, and smaller adverse effect sizes in the refresh function 2-back and the conversion function( d =0.497,0.398).@*Conclusion@#Obese adolescents have significant executive function deficits, but the degree of adverse varies across sub-functions, with inhibitory function being the core deficit component of executive function in obese adolescents.

The potential insulin sensitizing and glucose lowering effects of a novel indole derivative in vitro and in vivo.

Thiazolidinediones (TZDs) such as rosiglitazone are antidiabetic peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma (PPARgamma) agonists. PPARgamma agents improve diabetes by increasing insulin sensitivity and enhancing the differentiation of preadipocytes into adipocytes. The present study aimed to identify if 1-(4-chlorobenzoyl)-5-hydroxy-2-methyl-3-indoleacetitic acid (GY3), a newly synthesized indole compound, could enhance adipocytes differentiation and insulin sensitivity. The results showed that both GY3 and rosiglitazone significantly increased the lipid accumulating of 3T3-L1 adipocytes induced by isobutylmethylxanthine, dexamethasone and insulin mixture, but GY3 (not rosiglitazone) failed to increase the lipid accumulation when induced by insulin alone. In addition, GY3- or rosiglitaozne-induced protein expression of GLUT4 and adiponectin was determined by Western blot analysis. GY3 activated PPARalpha weakly but did not affect PPARgamma, while rosiglitazone activated PPARgamma significantly, suggesting different mechanisms between GY3 and rosiglitazone on adipocyte differentiation. Furthermore, both GY3 and rosiglitazone enhanced the adiponectin and insulin pathway proteins expression and adiponectin secretion in mature adipocytes, but only GY3 not rosiglitazone elevated gene expression of leptin and resistin. Both GY3 and rosiglitazone enhanced glucose consumption in HepG2 cells especially in the presence of insulin. In the in vivo study, GY3 decreased serum glucose and insulin in db/db mice, indicating the insulin sensitizing effect might contribute to its antidiabetic mechanism. Altogether, these results suggest that GY3 could improve insulin resistance and lower glucose level, GY3 and its derivatives might be developed as a substitution therapy for diseases with insulin resistance.

A fraction of Acorus calamus L. extract devoid of beta-asarone enhances adipocyte differentiation in 3T3-L1 cells.

The effects of fractions partitioned from the ethanol extract of Acorus calamus L. (AC) on adipocyte differentiation were investigated using cultured mouse 3T3-L1 preadipocytes. The degree of differentiation was evaluated by measuring the cellular triglycerides and protein expression of the glucose transporter GLUT4 in 3T3-L1 cells. The ethyl acetate fraction of the AC extract (ACE) was found to enhance adipocyte differentiation as did rosiglitazone. The results of further fractionation of ACE indicated that the active fraction does not consist of beta-asarone, which is a toxic component of this plant. This finding suggests that ACE has potential insulin-sensitizing activity like rosiglitazone, and may improve type 2 diabetes.

Insulin-sensitizing effects of a novel alpha-methyl- alpha -phenoxylpropionate derivative in vitro.

AIM: To examine the insulin sensitizing effects of a novel alpha-methyl-alpha- phenoxylpropionate derivative YY20 in insulin-sensitive cell lines. METHODS: The peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma (PPAR gamma) agonist bioactivities of YY20 were detected by a preadipocyte differentiation assay. RT-PCR and Western blotting analysis were used to detect the expression of the target gene or protein. The effects of YY20 on insulin-mediated glucose consumption were determined in the HepG2 human hepatocellular carcinoma line. RESULTS: YY20 could enhance the differentiation of preadipocytes to adipocytes and upregulate the gene expression of PPAR gamma 2, as well as the protein expression of insulin receptor substrate- 1 (IRS-1), glucose transporter-4 (GLUT4), and adiponectin (ACRP30). The effects on GLUT4 and ACRP30 could be reversed by the PPAR gamma inhibitor SR-202. Furthermore, YY20 efficiently reduced glucose consumptions in HepG2 cells after 24 h culture, and the effects were related to insulin and YY20 concentrations. CONCLUSION: YY20, a potential insulin-sensitizing agent like rosiglitazone, could enhance glucose consumption in HepG2 cells in a concentration- and insulindependent manner. It may improve the insulin resistance associated with type 2 diabetes.