Thank you for visiting nature.com. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain
the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility mode in
Internet Explorer). In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles
and JavaScript.
Extracellular-matrix remodelling promotes tumour progression and metastasis. Papalazarou et al. demonstrate that mechanosensing affects pancreatic cancer cell migration, metabolism and ultimately metastatic potential by targeting the creatine–phosphagen ATP-recycling system.
This study establishes reciprocal regulation between the two key nutrient sensors in cells, mTORC1 and AMPK, showing that mTORC1 directly inhibits AMPK by phosphorylation at S345 in the AMPK catalytic subunit α2.
Somatostatin is secreted by delta cells and inhibits insulin and glucagon secretion. Here Vergari et al. demonstrate a mechanism for somatostatin secretion that is dependent on decreased extracellular potassium and increased intracellular sodium levels, and is altered in islets from patients with diabetes.
Converting serine to pyruvate and ammonia, serine racemase is shown to support colon-cancer growth, thus highlighting a new strategy that cancer cells use to maintain cellular pyruvate levels and mitochondrial mass.
Adipose tissue varies depending on localization. Vijay et al. perform single-cell RNA sequencing in multiple adipose tissue depots from obese individuals and identify distinct subpopulations of endothelial cells, immune cells and pre-adipocytes.
Amyloid precursor protein contributes to the pathogenesis of Alzheimer’s disease. An et al. show that its increase in white adipose tissue under a high-fat diet promotes obesity and impairs mitochondrial function by blocking the protein import machinery.
Yu et al. report a bioluminescence- and paper-based assay for the rapid quantification of NAD+ levels in biological samples, such as blood and tissues.
Bevers and Litovchenko et al. sequence mitochondrial genomes from 169 different inbred Drosophila melanogaster strains to reveal mitochondrial population structure as well as links between mitochondrial haplotypes and metabolic variation in flies.
Persistent mitochondrial DNA stress is shown to upregulate nuclear DNA damage and repair responses via activation of the cGAS–STING pathway and a subset of interferon-stimulated genes.
The anti-diabetic drug metformin is shown to elevate plasma levels of the hormone GDF15. This increase in GDF15 is required for reductions in appetite and body mass, which are known to contribute to the beneficial metabolic effects of the drug.
Pulsatile GABA secretion from human beta cells via the volume regulatory anion channel (VRAC) and subsequent uptake by the GABA-permissive taurine transporter (TauT) is shown to regulate total insulin secretion and pulsatility.
Known as a regulator of lipolysis, ABHD5 is found to also act as a serine protease that cleaves HDAC4 in response to catecholaminergic stimulation, thus resulting in the formation of a polypeptide that protects against metabolic-stress-induced heart failure.
Liu et al. describe a molecular network wherein SIRT7 couples light-driven systemic body temperature cues to hepatic oscillators via HSP70 to ensure circadian phase coherence and glucose homeostasis in the liver.
Al Nabhani et al. show how excessive caloric intake during the postnatal period increases the risk of developing intestinal bowel disease during adulthood, owing to increased intestinal permeability, cytokines and hydrogen sulfide production by the microbiota.
Emerging findings identify important roles for brain lipoprotein receptors in the control of whole-body energy homoeostasis. Here Lee et al. reveal that IDOL-mediated regulation of VLDLR abundance in neurons, but not in peripheral metabolic tissues, regulates food intake and energy expenditure.
In addition to having direct anti-cancer effects, the cardiac glycoside ouabain is shown to kill a broad range of senescent cells, thus suggesting that cardiac glycosides represent a novel class of senolytics.
Dietary restriction (DR) late in life does not improve survival and has little benefit in metabolic health in mice. The absence of a DR gene-expression signature in fat tissue suggests that a ‘nutritional memory’ interferes with the benefits of DR.
Non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) is characterized by lipid accumulation within hepatocytes and fibrosis. Seitz et al. show that the GTPase protein Rab24 is increased in the livers of people who are obese or have NASH.
Here the authors provide a regulatory framework for the cardiac mitochondrial ATP synthase, which is shown to be dependent on cellular activity; levels of Ca2+, ADP and NADH; and the potential of the inner mitochondrial membrane.