Free fatty acids (FFAs) are the most metabolically important products of adipose tissue
lipolysis. Experimentally creating high FFA concentrations can reproduce the metabolic
abnormalities of obesity in lean, healthy persons and lowering FFA concentrations
can improve the metabolic health of upper body obese individuals. FFA concentrations
are determined by both the release of FFAs into the bloodstream and the clearance
of FFAs from the bloodstream. Normal FFA release rates are different in men and women
and total FFA release is closely linked to resting energy expenditure. Upper body
subcutaneous fat, visceral fat, and leg fat depots contribute differently to the exposure
of various tissues to FFAs. The implications of regional adipose tissue lipolysis
to systemic FFA availability and the effect of different approaches to treatment of
obesity are discussed.
free fatty acids - lipolysis - body fat distribution - obesity
