Moderate weight loss attenuates chronic endoplasmic reticulum stress and mitochondrial dysfunction in human obesity

In obese patients undergoing caloric restriction, there are several potential mechanisms involved in the improvement of metabolic outcomes. The present study further explores whether caloric restriction can modulate endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress and mitochondrial function, as both are known to be mechanisms underlying inflammation and insulin resistance (IR) during obesity.

A total of 64 obese patients with BMI ≥35 kg/m² underwent a dietary program consisting of 6 weeks of a very-low-calorie diet followed by 18 weeks of low-calorie diet. We evaluated changes in the metabolic and inflammatory markers -TNFα, hsCRP, complement component 3 (C3c), and retinol binding protein 4 (RBP4)-, in the ER stress markers and modulators -eIF2α-P, sXBP1, ATF6, JNK-P, CHOP, GRP78, and SIRT1-, and in mitochondrial function parameters -mitochondrial reactive oxygen species (mROS), glutathione peroxidase 1 (GPX1), cytosolic Ca²⁺, and mitochondrial membrane potential.

The dietary intervention produced an 8.85% weight loss associated with enhanced insulin sensitivity, a less marked atherogenic lipid profile, and a decrease in systemic inflammation (TNFα, hsCRP) and adipokine levels (RBP4 and C3c). Chronic ER stress was significantly reduced (ATF6-CHOP, JNK-P) and expression levels of SIRT1 and GRP78 - a Ca²⁺-dependent chaperone - were increased and accompanied by the restoration of Ca²⁺ depots. Furthermore, mROS production and mitochondrial membrane potential improvement were associated with the up-regulation of the antioxidant enzyme GPX1.

Our data provide evidence that moderate weight loss attenuates systemic inflammation and IR and promotes the amelioration of ER stress and mitochondrial dysfunction, increasing the expression of chaperones, SIRT1 and antioxidant GPX1.