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Review
. 2020 Sep 3:11:136.
doi: 10.4103/ijpvm.IJPVM_193_20. eCollection 2020.

Adiponectin: Role in Physiology and Pathophysiology

Thi Mong Diep Nguyen  1
Affiliations
Review

Adiponectin: Role in Physiology and Pathophysiology

Thi Mong Diep Nguyen. Int J Prev Med. .

Abstract

Adiponectin, an adipokine secreted by adipocytes, is a well-known homeostatic factor for regulating glucose levels, lipid metabolism, and insulin sensitivity through its anti-inflammatory, anti-fibrotic, and antioxidant effects. All these metabolic processes are mediated via two adiponectin receptors, AdipoR1 and AdipoR2. In addition, adiponectin is one of the hormones with the highest plasma concentrations. Weight loss or caloric restriction leads to increasing adiponectin levels, and this increase is associated with increased insulin sensitivity. Therefore, the adiponectin pathway can play a crucial role in the development of drugs to treat type 2 diabetes mellitus and other obesity-related diseases affected by insulin resistance like cancers or cardiovascular diseases. Adiponectin appears to increase insulin sensitivity by improving glucose and lipid metabolisms. The objective of this review is to analyze current knowledge concerning adiponectin and, in particular, its role in physiology and pathophysiology.

Keywords: AdipoR; Adipokines; adiponectin; obesity; type 2 diabetes mellitus.

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Conflict of interest statement

There are no conflicts of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Adiponectin structure and receptors.Monomeric ApN consists of a globular domain, a collagenous domain, a species-specific domain, and a signal peptide. Oligomerization facilitates the formation of the trimers (LMW), hexamers (MMW), and multimer (HMW). S-S: disulfide bond.ApN interacts with ApN receptors: AdipoR1, AdipoR2, and T-Cadherin. The dotted line between AdipoR2 and globular ApN reflects that AdipoR2 is a relatively low-affinity receptor for globular ApN
Figure 2
Figure 2
Summary of the involvement of Adiponectin in the signalling of its target cells
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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