BACKGROUND/AIMS Age-related cerebrovascular dysfunction contributes to stroke, cerebral amyloid angiopathy, cognitive decline and neurodegenerative diseases. One pathogenic mechanism underlying this effect is increased oxidative stress. Up-regulation of mitochondrial uncoupling protein 2 (UCP2) plays a crucial role in regulating reactive oxygen species (ROS) production. Dietary patterns are wid...

UCP2 plays a physiological role by regulating mitochondrial biogenesis, maintaining energy balance, ROS elimination, and regulating cellular autophagy in numerous tissues. But the exact roles of UCP2 in cumulus cells are still not clear. Genipin, a special UCP2 inhibitor, was added into the cultural medium to explore the roles of UCP2 in human cumulus cells. There were no significant difference...

Rationale: Previous studies indicate uncoupling protein-2 (UCP2) as an antioxidant defense against endothelial dysfunction in hypertension. UCP2 also regulates insulin secretion and action. However, the role of UCP2 in endothelial dysfunction associated with diabetes and obesity is unclear. Objective: UCP2 protects against endothelial dysfunction induced by high-fat diet through inhibition of r...

Uncoupling protein 2 (UCP2) is an inner mitochondrial membrane protein. Although the protein was discovered in 1997, its function and even its tissue distribution are still under debate. Here we present a quantitative analysis of mRNA and protein expression in various mice tissues, revealing that UCP2 is mainly expressed in organs and cells associated with the immune system. Although the UCP2 g...

Uncoupling protein 2 (UCP2) negatively regulates insulin secretion. UCP2 deficiency (by means of gene knockout) improves obesity- and high glucose-induced beta cell dysfunction and consequently improves type 2 diabetes in mice. In the present study, we have discovered that the small molecule, genipin, rapidly inhibits UCP2-mediated proton leak. In isolated mitochondria, genipin inhibits UCP2-me...

The Crosstalk between a tumor and its hypoxic microenvironment has become increasingly important. However, the exact role of UCP2 function in cancer cells under hypoxia remains unknown. In this study, UCP2 showed anti-apoptotic properties in A549 cells under hypoxic conditions. Over-expression of UCP2 in A549 cells inhibited reactive oxygen species (ROS) accumulation (P<0.001) and apoptosis (P<...

Uncoupling protein-2 (UCP2) belongs to the mitochondrial carrier family and has been thought to be involved in suppressing mitochondrial ROS production through uncoupling mitochondrial respiration from ATP synthesis. However, we show here that loss of function of UCP2 does not result in a significant increase in ROS production or an increased propensity for cells to undergo senescence in cultur...

RATIONALE Uncoupling protein (UCP)2 is a mitochondrial inner membrane protein that is expressed in mammalian myocardium under normal conditions and upregulated in pathological states such as heart failure. UCP2 is thought to protect cardiomyocytes against oxidative stress by dissipating the mitochondrial proton gradient and mitochondrial membrane potential (DeltaPsi(m)), thereby reducing mitoch...

AIMS Uncoupling protein 2 (UCP2) is a mitochondrial protein that reduces oxidative stress and has a protective function in chronic inflammatory diseases such as multiple sclerosis, rheumatoid arthritis and systemic lupus erythematosus. UCP2 is strongly expressed in areas implicated in the central regulation of stress and anxiety. Therefore, we compared the neuroendocrine regulation of stress re...