DNA repair-related genes and adipogenesis: Lessons from congenital lipodystrophies

Classical and progeroid congenital lipodystrophies are a collection of rare diseases displaying a large genetic heterogeneity. They occur due to pathogenic variants in genes associated with adipogenesis, DNA repair pathways, and genome stability. Subjects with lipodystrophy exhibit an impairment in the homeostasis of subcutaneous white adipose tissue (sWAT), resulting in low leptin and adiponectin levels, insulin resistance (IR), diabetes, dyslipidemia, ectopic fat deposition, inflammation, mitochondrial and endoplasmic reticulum commitments, among others. However, how pathogenic variants in adipogenesis-related genes modulate DNA repair in some classical congenital lipodystrophies has not been elucidated. In the same way, no data is clarifying how pathogenic variants in DNA repair genes result in sWAT loss in different types of progeroid lipodystrophies. This review will concentrate on the main molecular findings to understand the link between DNA damage/repair and adipogenesis in human and animal models of congenital lipodystrophies. We will focus on classical and progeroid congenital lipodystrophies directly or indirectly related to DNA repair pathways, highlighting the role of DNA repair-related proteins in maintaining sWAT homeostasis.