Oxidative Stress and Inflammatory Mechanisms in Obesity, Diabetes, and the Metabolic Syndrome PDF

Preface

Metabolic syndrome is a multicomponent disorder characterized by obesity, insulin resistance, dyslipidemia, and hypertension that is associated with the risks of type 2 diabetes mellitus and cardiovascular disease. Obesity plays a central role and is a principal causative factor in the progression of metabolic syndrome leading to type 2 diabetes mellitus and cardiovascular disease. Increased systemic oxidative stress may be an important mechanism by which obesity increases the incidence of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease, the progression of which entails oxidative (up-regulation of oxidative enzymes) and inflammatory (increased production of tumor necrosis factors and other cytokines) components. The significance of inflammatory processes in accumulated fat appears to be an early initiator of metabolic syndrome, thus strengthening an association with oxidative stress and supporting the development of drugs targeted at ameliorating cellular redox status. Likewise, the more active angiotensin system in obesity may contribute to expanded oxidative stress that serves as a key signaling event in vascular remodeling.

A greater understanding of the molecular mechanisms that underlie inflammation and oxidative stress with implications for metabolic stress must be achieved so that evidence-based nutritional and pharmacological therapies can be developed to attenuate the impacts of obesity-induced insulin resistance and ensuing metabolic syndrome.

The chapters in this book report cutting-edge research exploring the intracellular events mediating or preventing oxidative stress and pro-inflammatory processes in obesity and type 2 diabetes as well as the molecular mechanisms inherent in the progression of metabolic stress, phenotypic perspectives, dietary factors, and micronutrients. They attempt to provide perspectives on the different components of metabolic stress and obesity and their associations with oxidative stress and inflammation. Pharmacological interventions in disease management are not emphasized and are covered elsewhere.

The editors gratefully appreciate the initial stimulus for this book — a workshop on obesity, oxidative stress related to metabolic syndrome, uncoupling proteins, and micronutrient action conducted March 15 through 18, 2006 as part of the Twelfth Annual Meeting of the Oxygen Club of California at Santa Barbara. We would like to acknowledge the sponsorship of that workshop by the Human Nutrition Group of BASF, Ludwigshafen, Germany, and, in particular, the input and help of Dr. Ute Obermüller-Jevic.