Go to JCI Insight
  • About
  • Editors
  • Consulting Editors
  • For authors
  • Publication ethics
  • Publication alerts by email
  • Advertising
  • Job board
  • Contact
  • Clinical Research and Public Health
  • Current issue
  • Past issues
  • By specialty
    • COVID-19
    • Cardiology
    • Gastroenterology
    • Immunology
    • Metabolism
    • Nephrology
    • Neuroscience
    • Oncology
    • Pulmonology
    • Vascular biology
    • All ...
  • Videos
    • Conversations with Giants in Medicine
    • Video Abstracts
  • Reviews
    • View all reviews ...
    • Complement Biology and Therapeutics (May 2025)
    • Evolving insights into MASLD and MASH pathogenesis and treatment (Apr 2025)
    • Microbiome in Health and Disease (Feb 2025)
    • Substance Use Disorders (Oct 2024)
    • Clonal Hematopoiesis (Oct 2024)
    • Sex Differences in Medicine (Sep 2024)
    • Vascular Malformations (Apr 2024)
    • View all review series ...
  • Viewpoint
  • Collections
    • In-Press Preview
    • Clinical Research and Public Health
    • Research Letters
    • Letters to the Editor
    • Editorials
    • Commentaries
    • Editor's notes
    • Reviews
    • Viewpoints
    • 100th anniversary
    • Top read articles

  • Current issue
  • Past issues
  • Specialties
  • Reviews
  • Review series
  • Conversations with Giants in Medicine
  • Video Abstracts
  • In-Press Preview
  • Clinical Research and Public Health
  • Research Letters
  • Letters to the Editor
  • Editorials
  • Commentaries
  • Editor's notes
  • Reviews
  • Viewpoints
  • 100th anniversary
  • Top read articles
  • About
  • Editors
  • Consulting Editors
  • For authors
  • Publication ethics
  • Publication alerts by email
  • Advertising
  • Job board
  • Contact

Submit a comment

Lipogenesis in Human Adipose Tissue: Some Effects of Nibbling and Gorging
George A. Bray
George A. Bray
Published March 1, 1972
Citation Information: J Clin Invest. 1972;51(3):537-548. https://doi.org/10.1172/JCI106842.
View: Text | PDF
Research Article

Lipogenesis in Human Adipose Tissue: Some Effects of Nibbling and Gorging

  • Text
  • PDF
Abstract

Six grossly obese patients were fed 5000 calorie diets for 4 wk. During one period of 2 wk, the calories were consumed over 4 hr (gorging) and during the other 2 wk, the dietary intake was spread over 20 hr (nibbling). Each of these periods followed a low caloric intake which lasted at least 10 days. Three male patients (group I) were studied at or near their maximal weight and three females (group II) after a weight loss of 50-70 kg. The patients in group II gained more weight than those in group I. Lipogenesis from pyruvate was greater in group II than in group I. Rapid ingestion of food (gorging) was accompanied by a significant increase in glyceride-glycerol-14C and fatty acids-14C from pyruvate-14C. The enzymatic activity of sn-glycerol 3-phosphate dehydrogenase and mitochondrial glycerophosphate oxidase paralleled the rate of formation of glyceride-glycerol. Lipogenesis from pyruvate was significantly lower when the bicarbonate concentration was reduced from 25 to 10 mM. Citrate and acetate were also converted to fatty acids but there was no difference between gorging and nibbling. An inhibitor of carbonic anhydrase significantly reduced the conversion of pyruvate into CO2, glyceride-glycerol, and fatty acids. These data on gorging and nibbling have been related to other studies suggesting that the frequency of food intake may be inversely related to obesity.

Authors

George A. Bray

×

Guidelines

The Editorial Board will only consider comments that are deemed relevant and of interest to readers. The Journal will not post data that have not been subjected to peer review; or a comment that is essentially a reiteration of another comment.

  • Comments appear on the Journal’s website and are linked from the original article’s web page.
  • Authors are notified by email if their comments are posted.
  • The Journal reserves the right to edit comments for length and clarity.
  • No appeals will be considered.
  • Comments are not indexed in PubMed.

Specific requirements

  • Maximum length, 400 words
  • Entered as plain text or HTML
  • Author’s name and email address, to be posted with the comment
  • Declaration of all potential conflicts of interest (even if these are not ultimately posted); see the Journal’s conflict-of-interest policy
  • Comments may not include figures
This field is required
This field is required
This field is required
This field is required
This field is required
This field is required

Copyright © 2025 American Society for Clinical Investigation
ISSN: 0021-9738 (print), 1558-8238 (online)

Sign up for email alerts