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Updated: Sep 30, 2025

Isolation and Differentiation of Stromal Vascular Cells to Beige/Brite Cells
Published on: March 28, 2013
FOXP4 differentially controls cold-induced beige adipocyte differentiation and thermogenesis
Fuhua Wang1, Shuqin Xu1, Tienan Chen1
1Bio-X-Renji Hospital Research Center, Renji Hospital, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200240, China.
Forkhead box P4 (FOXP4) primes beige adipocyte differentiation but suppresses their thermogenic activation. This transcription factor
Area of Science:
- Cell Biology
- Metabolism
- Gene Regulation
Background:
- Beige adipocytes are crucial for thermogenesis but the regulatory mechanisms are unclear.
- Understanding beige adipocyte plasticity is key to metabolic research.
Purpose of the Study:
- To identify transcriptional regulators of beige adipocyte development and thermogenesis.
- To elucidate the role of forkhead box P4 (FOXP4) in beige adipocyte function.
Main Methods:
- Generation and analysis of beige adipocyte-specific knockout mice.
- Investigating the impact of FOXP4 depletion on adipocyte differentiation and thermogenic gene expression.
Main Results:
- FOXP4 depletion in progenitor cells impaired early beige adipocyte differentiation.
- Ablation of FOXP4 in differentiated beige adipocytes enhanced cold-induced thermogenesis.
- FOXP4's effect on UCP1-mediated thermogenesis was specific to beige, not brown, adipocytes.
Conclusions:
- FOXP4 acts as a dual regulator, promoting beige adipocyte differentiation while repressing their thermogenic activation.
- FOXP4's transcriptional repression of the thermogenic program is a key finding.
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