Combined nicotinamide N-methyltransferase inhibition and reduced-calorie diet normalizes body composition and enhances metabolic benefits in obese mice

Abstract

Obesity is a large and growing global health problem with few effective therapies. The present study investigated metabolic and physiological benefits of nicotinamide N-methyltransferase inhibitor (NNMTi) treatment combined with a lean diet substitution in diet-induced obese mice. NNMTi treatment combined with lean diet substitution accelerated and improved body weight and fat loss, increased whole-body lean mass to body weight ratio, reduced liver and epididymal white adipose tissue weights, decreased liver adiposity, and improved hepatic steatosis, relative to a lean diet substitution alone. Importantly, combined lean diet and NNMTi treatment normalized body composition and liver adiposity parameters to levels observed in age-matched lean diet control mice. NNMTi treatment produced a unique metabolomic signature in adipose tissue, with predominant increases in ketogenic amino acid abundance and alterations to metabolites linked to energy metabolic pathways. Taken together, NNMTi treatment’s modulation of body weight, adiposity, liver physiology, and the adipose tissue metabolome strongly support it as a promising therapeutic for obesity and obesity-driven comorbidities.

Document Details

Document Type
Pub Defense Publication
Publication Date
Mar 11, 2021
Source ID
10.1038/s41598-021-85051-6

Entities

People

  • Andrea L Dimet
  • Catherine Sampson
  • Harshini Neelakantan
  • Heather L. Stevenson
  • Jonathan D Hommel
  • Kehinde O. Ogunseye
  • Stanley J Watowich

Organizations

  • National Institutes of Health
  • United States Department of Defense

Tags

Readers

  • Exercise and Sports Science.
  • Molecular and Cellular Biology