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Trial Lecture – time and place
See Trial Lecture.
Adjudication committee
- First opponent: Professor Bianca Rocca, Catholic University School of Medicine, Italy
- Second opponent: Professor Knut Tore Lappegård, The Arctic University of Norway
- Third member and chair of the evaluation committee: Professor Kirsten B. Holven, University of Oslo
Chair of the Defence
Professor Tore Julsrud Berg, University of Oslo
Principal Supervisor
Senior Scientist Trine Baur Opstad, University of Oslo
Summary
The adipose tissue is an active organ, able to produce enzymes that are involved in various diseases such as cardiovascular disease and diabetes.
In our study, we have investigated the effects of exercise training on genetic expression and production of these enzymes in patients with type 2 diabetes and coronary artery disease. Our results showed that 12 months of exercise training had limited impact on both circulating levels and gene expression levels of the investigated enzymes. This could indicate that exercise training has limited impact on the production of adipose tissue enzymes in patients with established coronary artery disease and diabetes.
Furthermore, we explored and found an association between some of the variables involved in glucose metabolism and the investigated adipose tissue enzymes in our study, suggesting that these enzymes are involved in the regulation of the glucose balance in our body. We found that exercise capacity, measured as VO2peak, was associated with the protective enzyme adiponectin.
Lastly, we looked into the association between the amount of adipose tissue and adipose tissue enzymes in superficial and deeper adipose tissue compartments, including the visceral fat, in a healthy population. We found that the deeper adipose tissue compartments had a stronger association to the protective enzyme adiponectin, whereas the superficial adipose tissue compartment were more strongly associated to the inflammatory enzyme TNFα. This could suggest that a reduction of the adipose tissue amount in the deeper layers is beneficial through an increase in the protective enzyme adiponectin, while reduction of the adipose tissue amount in the more superficial compartment, exerts its beneficial effects through a decrease in the inflammatory marker TNFα.
Additional information
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