Université de Fribourg

Pathways from dieting to weight regain, to obesity and to the metabolic syndrome: an overview

Dulloo, Abdul G. ; Montani, Jean-Pierre

In: Obesity Reviews, 2015, vol. 16, p. 1–6

Every year, scores of millions of people – as diverse as obese and lean, teenagers and older adults, sedentary and elite athletes, commoners and celebrities – attempt to lose weight on some form of diet. They are often encouraged by their parents, friends, health professionals, training coaches, a media that promotes a slim image and a diet- industry that in Europe and United States alone...

Université de Fribourg

Dieting and weight cycling as risk factors for cardiometabolic diseases: who is really at risk?

Montani, Jean-Pierre ; Schutz, Yves ; Dulloo, Abdul G.

In: Obesity Reviews, 2015, vol. 16, p. 7–18

Despite the poor prognosis of dieting in obesity management, which often results in repeated attempts at weight loss and hence weight cycling, the prevalence of dieting has increased continuously in the past decades in parallel to the steadily increasing prevalence of obesity. However, dieting and weight cycling are not limited to those who are obese or overweight as substantial proportions of...

Université de Fribourg

Translational issues in targeting brown adipose tissue thermogenesis for human obesity management

Dulloo, Abdul G.

In: Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, 2013, vol. 1302, no. 1, p. 1–10

The recent advancements in unraveling novel mechanisms that control the induction, (trans)differentiation, proliferation, and thermogenic activity and capacity of brown adipose tissue (BAT), together with the application of imaging techniques for human BAT visualization, have generated optimism that these advances will provide novel strategies for targeting BAT thermogenesis, leading to...

Université de Fribourg

Adaptive thermogenesis in human body weight regulation: more of a concept than a measurable entity?

Dulloo, Abdul G. ; Jacquet, Jean ; Montani, Jean-Pierre ; Schutz, Yves

In: Obesity Reviews, 2012, vol. 13, no. S2, p. 105–121

According to Lavoisier, ‘Life is combustion’. But to what extent humans adapt to changes in food intake through adaptive thermogenesis – by turning down the rate of heat production during energy deficit (so as to conserve energy) or turning it up during overnutrition (so as to dissipate excess calories) – has been one of the most controversial issues in nutritional sciences over the past...

Université de Fribourg

The search for compounds that stimulate thermogenesis in obesity management: from pharmaceuticals to functional food ingredients

Dulloo, Abdul G.

In: Obesity Reviews, 2011, vol. 12, no. 10, p. 866–883

The concept of managing obesity through the stimulation of thermogenesis is currently a focus of considerable attention by the pharmaceutical, nutraceutical and functional food industries. This paper first reviews the landmark discoveries that have fuelled the search for thermogenic anti-obesity products that range from single-target drugs to multi-target functional foods. It subsequently...

Université de Fribourg

Thrifty metabolism that favors fat storage after caloric restriction: a role for skeletal muscle phosphatidylinositol-3-kinase activity and AMP-activated protein kinase

Summermatter, Serge ; Mainieri, Davide ; Russell, A. P. ; Seydoux, Josiane ; Montani, Jean-Pierre ; Buchala, Anthony J. ; Solinas, Giovanni ; Dulloo, Abdul G.

In: Faseb Journal, 2008, vol. 22, p. 774-785

Energy conservation directed at accelerating body fat recovery (or catch-up fat) contributes to obesity relapse after slimming and to excess fat gain during catch-up growth after malnutrition. To investigate the mechanisms underlying such thrifty metabolism for catch-up fat, we tested whether during refeeding after caloric restriction rats exhibiting catch-up fat driven by suppressed...

Université de Fribourg

Regulation of fat storage via suppressed thermogenesis: a thrifty phenotype that predisposes individuals with catch-up growth to insulin resistance and obesity

Dulloo, Abdul G.

In: Hormone Research, 2006, vol. 65, no. 3, p. 90-97

Catch-up growth during infancy and childhood is increasingly recognized as a major risk factor for later development of insulin-related complications and chronic diseases, namely abdominal obesity, type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease. As catch-up growth per se is characterized by insulin resistance, hyperinsulinaemia and an accelerated rate of fat storage (i.e., catch-up fat) even in...

Université de Fribourg

Adaptive thermogenesis and uncoupling proteins: a reappraisal of their roles in fat metabolism and energy balance

Dulloo, Abdul G. ; Seydoux, Josiane ; Jacquet, Jean

In: Physiology & Behavior, 2004, vol. 83, no. 4, p. 587-602

After decades of controversies about the quantitative importance of autoregulatory adjustments in energy expenditure in weight regulation, there is now increasing recognition that even subtle variations in thermogenesis could, in dynamic systems and over the long term, be important in determining weight maintenance in some and obesity in others. The main challenge nowadays is to provide a...