Meteorin-like
Meteorin-like (METRNL) is a secreted hormone of the meteorin family, induced by exercise in skeletal muscle and by cold exposure in adipose tissue. It promotes energy expenditure and is encoded by the gene meteorin like, glial cell differentiation regulator. Browse Assay Genie's current range of Meteorin-like research reagents below, or read on for the biology behind the target.
Meteorin-like is a hormone that is induced in skeletal muscle after exercise and in adipose tissue following cold exposure, and it is present in the circulation. It stimulates energy expenditure associated with the browning of white fat depots and improves glucose tolerance. Rather than raising a thermogenic gene programme through direct action on adipocytes, it acts by stimulating several immune cell subtypes to enter adipose tissue and activate their prothermogenic functions.
Within fat, Meteorin-like drives an eosinophil-dependent increase in IL-4 expression and promotes alternative activation of adipose tissue macrophages. These macrophages are required for the increased expression of thermogenic and anti-inflammatory gene programmes in fat. The protein is also required for some cold-induced thermogenic responses, which points to a role in metabolic adaptation to cold temperatures.
The METRNL gene encodes Meteorin-like protein, which belongs to the meteorin family and is annotated as secreted. Gene annotation predicts hormone activity, involvement in brown fat cell differentiation and its positive regulation, and a response to muscle activity, and places the protein in extracellular exosomes. Orthologues in mouse and rat are both named Metrnl, so findings in rodent models can be compared directly with the human protein. Researchers studying Meteorin-like often work at the interface of exercise physiology, adipose biology and immune regulation of metabolism.
Meteorin-like is induced in skeletal muscle after exercise and circulates as a hormone, making it a candidate mediator of muscle-to-fat communication.
It stimulates energy expenditure linked to browning of white fat and is required for some cold-induced thermogenic responses.
It acts through eosinophils, IL-4 and alternatively activated adipose tissue macrophages rather than directly on adipocytes.
Meteorin-like improves glucose tolerance, so it is relevant to studies of metabolic adaptation and energy balance.
Meteorin-like is a hormone induced by exercise in skeletal muscle and by cold in adipose tissue. It promotes energy expenditure, white fat browning and glucose tolerance by recruiting and activating immune cells in fat, including eosinophils and alternatively activated macrophages.
The HGNC name is meteorin like, glial cell differentiation regulator, and UniProt lists the product as Meteorin-like protein. No alternative symbols or previous names are recorded in the sources used here. It belongs to the meteorin family.
Yes. Mouse and rat both have an orthologous gene named Metrnl, so the protein can be studied in rodent models of exercise and cold exposure. Check the datasheet of any product for its validated reactivity.
Meteorin family members, immune mediators and thermogenesis-related targets studied alongside Meteorin-like.
Gene and protein annotations from HGNC, NCBI Gene and UniProt Q641Q3; product specifications from Assay Genie datasheets.