ER stress in obesity pathogenesis and management

Given the unprecedented global pandemic of obesity, a better understanding of the etiology of adiposity will be necessary to ensure effective management of obesity and related complications. Among the various potential factors contributing to obesity, endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress refers to a state of excessive protein unfolding or misfolding that is commonly found in metabolic diseases including diabetes mellitus, insulin resistance (IR), and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, although its role in obesogenesis remains controversial. ER stress is thought to drive adiposity by dampening energy expenditure, making ER stress a likely therapeutic target for the management of obesity. We summarize the role of ER stress and the ER stress response in the onset and development of obesity, and discuss the underlying mechanisms involved with a view to identifying novel therapeutic strategies for obesity prevention and management. Endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress and obesity constitute a vicious cycle. ER stress contributes to obesity, and obesity aggravates ER stress.Although the unfolded protein response (UPR) is an adaptive response to ER stress, hyperactivation of the UPR can be a maladaptive process in obese conditions.ER stress alleviators as well as lifestyle modifications may combat both ER stress and obesity.Future work will be necessary to develop therapeutic agents to target maladaptive UPR.