Adipocyte-specific deletion of IL-6 does not attenuate obesity-induced weight gain or glucose intolerance in mice

Abstract

It has been suggested that interleukin-6 (IL-6) produced by adipocytes in obesity leads to liver insulin resistance, although this hypothesis has never been definitively tested. Accordingly, we did so by generating adipocyte-specific IL-6-deficient (AdipoIL-6^-/-) mice and studying them in the context of diet-induced and genetic obesity. Mice carrying two floxed alleles of IL-6 (C57Bl/6J) were crossed with Cre recombinase-overexpressing mice driven by the adiponectin promoter to generate AdipoIL-6^-/- mice. AdipoIL-6^-/- and floxed littermate controls were fed a standard chow or high-fat diet (HFD) for 16 wk and comprehensively metabolically phenotyped. In addition to a diet-induced obesity model, we also examined the role of adipocyte-derived IL-6 in a genetic model of obesity and insulin resistance by crossing the AdipoIL-6^-/- mice with leptin-deficient (<i>ob/ob</i>) mice. As expected, mice on HFD and <i>ob/ob</i> mice displayed marked weight gain and increased fat mass compared with chow-fed and <i>ob/+</i> (littermate control) animals, respectively. However, deletion of IL-6 from adipocytes in either model had no effect on glucose tolerance or fasting hyperinsulinemia. We concluded that adipocyte-specific IL-6 does not contribute to whole body glucose intolerance in obese mice.