Up-Regulation of the Claudin-6 Gene in Adipogenesis

To investigate the role of claudin-6 in adipogenesis, claudin-6 mRNA was examined in adipose tissues and adipocyte differentiation. Claudin-6 mRNA was found to be differentially expressed in four different adipose tissues, and up-regulated in each fat depot of mice fed a high-fat diet as compared to a normal-fat diet. Levels of claudin-6 transcripts were increased during differentiation of 3T3-L1 cells in vitro. Moreover, small interfering RNA (siRNA)-mediated reduction of claudin-6 mRNA inhibited differentiation of 3T3-L1 cells. These results suggest that claudin-6 is another important regulator in adipogenesis and fat deposition.