Investigation into relevant factors of seasonal variation in brown adipose tissue vascular density in humans (Conference Presentation)

We examined the effect of gene polymorphism on seasonal variation in brown adipose tissue density (BAT-d), which was estimated using total hemoglobin concentration in the supraclavicular region by near-infrared time-resolved spectroscopy, in healthy subjects (22 men and 26 women, aged 24-54 years) both in summer and winter. The genotype of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in uncoupling protein-1, β2- and 3- adrenergic receptors was also determined using TaqMan SNP Genotyping Assays. The results of the multiple regression analysis indicated that no SNPs affected the seasonal variation in BAT-d, but the level of BAT-d in winter significantly influenced the seasonal variation in BAT-d (β = 0.357, p = 0.013). In conclusion, SNPs determined in this study were not significantly relevant factors of seasonal variation in BAT-d, but it suggests that seasonal variation in BAT-d occurs in subjects with higher BAT-d in winter.