Perilipin 2 and Age-Related Metabolic Diseases: A New Perspective

• Published in: Trends in endocrinology and metabolism Vol. 27; no. 12; pp. 893 - 903
• Main Authors: Conte, Maria, Franceschi, Claudio, Sandri, Marco, Salvioli, Stefano
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Elsevier Ltd 01.12.2016
• Subjects: Aging - physiology; Animals; Cardiovascular Diseases - genetics; Cardiovascular Diseases - metabolism; Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 - genetics; Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 - metabolism; ectopic lipid deposition; Endocrinology & Metabolism; Humans; Insulin Resistance - genetics; Insulin Resistance - physiology; lipid droplets; Lipid Metabolism - genetics; Lipid Metabolism - physiology; metabolic diseases; Metabolic Diseases - genetics; Metabolic Diseases - metabolism; perilipin 2; Perilipin-2 - genetics; Perilipin-2 - metabolism; perilipin 2; ectopic lipid deposition; lipid droplets; metabolic diseases
• ISSN: 1043-2760; 1879-3061
• DOI: 10.1016/j.tem.2016.09.001

Perilipin 2 (Plin2), a protein associated with the metabolism of intracellular lipid droplets (LDs), has long been considered only for its role in lipid storage. However, the manipulation of its expression affects the severity of a variety of metabolic and age-related diseases, such as fatty liver, insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes (T2D), cardiovascular disease, atherosclerosis, sarcopenia, and cancer, suggesting that this protein may play a role in these pathological conditions. In particular, its downregulation in mice prevents or mitigates some of the above mentioned diseases. Conversely, in humans high levels of Plin2 are present in sarcopenia, hepatic steatosis, atherosclerosis, and some types of cancer. We propose that inhibition of Plin2 might be a strategy to counteract several metabolic and age-related diseases.