Beta-adrenergic responsiveness of adenylate cyclase in human adipocyte plasma membranes in obesity and after massive weight reduction.

The aim of this study was to find out how beta-adrenergic responsiveness of adipocytes is altered in obesity and by weight loss and to investigate what mechanisms lead to potential alterations in responsiveness. Crude plasma membranes were prepared from adipocytes of massively obese and normal-weight individuals, as well as previously obese patients that had lost an average of 38% of their initial weight after bariatric surgery. Stimulation of adenylate cyclase by isoproterenol varied considerably in fat cell plasma membranes from different individuals. Crude fat cell plasma membranes from obese patients were less responsive to isoproterenol than those from normal-weight subjects, whereas those from postgastroplasty patients were hyperresponsive. The response was correlated negatively with cell size and positively with beta-adrenergic receptor density and with the ratio of beta-receptors and stimulatory G-proteins (Gs). There was no correlation with Gs content. However, differences in receptor density between small and large cells or normal-weight, obese, and post-bypass patients could not explain the observed differences in responsiveness to isoproterenol between the different groups.