Background & aims: Since the discovery of active brown adipose tissue in human adults, non-shivering cold-induced thermogenesis (CIT) has been regarded as a promising tool to combat obesity.... Show moreBackground & aims: Since the discovery of active brown adipose tissue in human adults, non-shivering cold-induced thermogenesis (CIT) has been regarded as a promising tool to combat obesity. However, there is a lack of consensus regarding the method of choice to analyze indirect calorimetry data from a CIT study. We analyzed the impact of methods for data selection and methods for data analysis on measures of cold-induced energy expenditure (EE) and nutrient oxidation rates.Methods: Forty-four young healthy adults (22.1 +/- 2.1 years old, 25.6 +/- 5.2 kg/m(2), 29 women) participated in the study. Resting metabolic rate (RMR), cold-induced thermogenesis (CIT), and cold-induced nutrient oxidation rates were estimated by indirect calorimetry under fasting conditions during 1 h of cold exposure combining air conditioning (19.5-20 degrees C) and a water perfused cooling vest set at a temperature of 4 degrees C above the individual shivering threshold. We applied three methods for data selection: (i) time intervals every 5 min (5min-TI), (ii) the most stable 5-min period of every forth part of the cold exposure (5min-SS-4P), and (iii) the most stable 5-min period of every half part of the cold exposure (5min-SS-2P). Lately we applied two methods for data analysis: (i) area under the curve as a percentage of the baseline RMR (AUC) and; (ii) the difference between EE at the end of the cold exposure and baseline RMR (Last-RMR).Results: Mean overall CIT estimation ranged from 11.6 +/- 10.0 to 20.1 +/- 17.2 %RMR depending on the methods for data selection and analysis used. Regarding methods for data selection, 5min-SS-2P did not allow to observe physiologically relevant phenomena (e.g. metabolic shift in fuel oxidation; P = 0.547) due to a lack of resolution. The 5min-TI and 5min-SS-4P methods for data selection seemed to be accurate enough to observe physiologically relevant phenomena (all P < 0.014), but not comparable for estimating over-all CIT and cold-induced nutrient oxidation rates (P < 0.01). Regarding methods for data analysis, the AUC seemed to be less affected for data artefacts and to be more representative in participants with a non-stable energy expenditure during cold exposure.Conclusions: The methods for data selection and analysis can have a profound impact on CIT and cold-induced nutrient oxidation rates estimations, and therefore, it is mandatory to unify it across scientific community to allow inter-study comparisons. Based on our findings, 5min-TI should be considered the method of choice to study dynamics (i.e. changes across time) of CIT and cold-induced nutrient oxidation rates, while 5min-SS-4P and AUC should be the method of choice when computing CIT and cold-induced nutrient oxidation rates as a single value. (C) 2018 Elsevier Ltd and European Society for Clinical Nutrition and Metabolism. All rights reserved. Show less
PurposeNear-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) has recently been proposed as an indirect technique to assess brown adipose tissue (BAT) in young men. NIRS arises as a novel technique to avoid the... Show morePurposeNear-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) has recently been proposed as an indirect technique to assess brown adipose tissue (BAT) in young men. NIRS arises as a novel technique to avoid the limitations of the gold-standard 2-deoxy-2-[F-18]fluoro-D-glucose ([F-18]DG) positron emission tomography combined with X-ray computed tomography (PET/CT). The aim of this study was to examine the association between near-infrared spatially resolved spectroscopy (NIRSRS) parameters and BAT volume and activity estimated by [F-18]DG-PET/CT in 18 young healthy women.ProceduresNIR(SRS) parameters [tissue saturation index and concentrations of total haemoglobin, oxy-haemoglobin, and deoxy-haemoglobin] were continuously measured in the supraclavicular and forearm regions, in both warm and cold (2h of personalised cold exposure) conditions. Then, the NIRSRS data were analysed as an average of 5min in 4 different periods: (i) warm period as the baseline record, (ii) cold period I, (iii) cold period II, and (iv) cold period III. The data were then correlated with BAT volume and activity (SUVmean and SUVpeak) estimated by [F-18]DG-PET/CT.ResultsThere was no association between the NIRSRS parameters in the supraclavicular region in warm conditions (no previous cold exposure) and BAT volume and activity (P>0.05). Similarly, the cold-induced changes of the NIRSRS parameters in the supraclavicular region were not associated with BAT volume and activity (P>0.05).ConclusionsNIR(SRS) does not seem to be a valid technique to indirectly assess BAT in young healthy women. Further research is needed to validate this technique against other methods such as PET/CT using different radiotracers or magnetic resonance imaging. Show less
