Fatty acid binding protein 4 (FABP4) plays a critical role in metabolism and inflammatory processes and therefore is a potential therapeutic target for immunometabolic diseases such as diabetes and atherosclerosis.
Previous studies have shown that reduced levels of the adipocyte fatty acid binding protein (FABP)4 (AFABP/aP2), result in metabolic improvement including potentiated insulin sensitivity and attenuated atherosclerosis.
To reveal a correlation between periodontitis and systemic diseases as well as a relevant molecular pathway, we investigated the effects of <i>Porphyromonas gingivalis</i> and <i>Fusobacterium nucleatum</i>, which play roles in chronic periodontitis progression, on Raw264.7 and THP-1 macrophages.Infection with <i>P. gingivalis</i> or <i>F. nucleatum</i> significantly induced the expression of fatty acid binding protein 4 (FABP4), one of the most important adipokines that play a role in the progression of systemic diseases such as atherosclerosis and type 2 diabetes.
An elevated circulating FABP4 level is associated with insulin resistance and atherosclerosis.Methods and Results:We investigated the causative association between FABP4 level and progression of atherosclerosis in subjects of the Tanno-Sobetsu Study, a population-based cohort.
FABP4 is secreted from adipocytes in association with lipolysis, and an elevated circulating FABP4 level is associated with obesity, insulin resistance, and atherosclerosis.