Supraclavicular skin temperature as a measure of 18F-FDG uptake by BAT in human subjects

PLoS One. 2014 Jun 12;9(6):e98822. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0098822. eCollection 2014.

Abstract

Background: Brown adipose tissue (BAT) has emerged as a novel player in energy homeostasis in humans and is considered a potential new target for combating obesity and related diseases. The current 'gold standard' for quantification of BAT volume and activity is cold-induced 18F-FDG uptake in BAT. However, use of this technique is limited by cost and radiation exposure. Given the fact that BAT is a thermogenic tissue, mainly located in the supraclavicular region, the aim of the current study was to investigate whether cold-induced supraclavicular skin temperature and core body temperature may be alternative markers of BAT activation in humans.

Subjects/methods: BAT volume and activity were measured in 24 healthy lean adolescent males (mean age 24.1±0.8 years), using cold-induced 18F-FDG uptake with PET-CT. Core body temperature was measured continuously in the small intestine with use of an ingestible telemetric capsule and skin temperature was measured by eighteen wireless iButtons attached to the skin following ISO-defined locations.

Results: Proximal and distal (hand/feet) skin temperatures markedly decreased upon cold exposure, while supraclavicular skin temperature significantly increased (35.2±0.1 vs. 35.5±0.1°C, p = 0.001). Furthermore, cold-induced supraclavicular skin temperature positively correlated with both total (R2 = 0.28, P = 0.010) and clavicular BAT volume (R2 = 0.20, P = 0.030) and clavicular SUVmax (R2 = 0.27, P = 0.010), while core body temperature did not.

Conclusions: Supraclavicular skin temperature as measured by iButtons may have predictive value for BAT detection in adult humans. This is highly desirable considering the increasing interest in pharmacological interventions to stimulate BAT in human subjects.

Trial registration: NTR 2473.

Publication types

  • Clinical Trial
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Adipose Tissue, Brown / metabolism
  • Adipose Tissue, Brown / physiology*
  • Adolescent
  • Adult
  • Cold Temperature
  • Fluorodeoxyglucose F18 / pharmacokinetics*
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Radiopharmaceuticals / pharmacokinetics*
  • Skin Temperature*
  • Thermometry / methods*

Substances

  • Radiopharmaceuticals
  • Fluorodeoxyglucose F18

Grants and funding

This work was financed by the Dutch Diabetes Research Foundation (grant 2012.11.1500 to P. C. N. R. and M. R. B.). M. R. B. is supported by the Board of Directors of the Leiden University Medical Center (LUMC) and P. C. N. R. is Established Investigator of the Netherlands Heart Foundation (grant 2009T038). The authors also thank Roba Metals B. V. IJsselstein (Utrecht, The Netherlands) for financial support. The Blanketrol ® III cooling device was kindly provided by FMH Medical (Veenendaal, The Netherlands). The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript. All funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript. All funders, including Roba Metals B.V. IJsselstein and FHM Medical, do not have competing interests that interfere with, or could be perceived as interfering with, the complete and objective presentation, peer review, editorial decision-making, or publication of a manuscript. Furthermore, the financial support of these funders does not alter the authors' adherence to PLOS ONE policies on sharing data and materials.