Stress heats up the adipocyte

Cells and tissues are often subjected to stressful environments that challenge homeostasis and can include oxidative, nutrient or metabolic stress. Cell survival requires the recruitment of stress pathways that 'defend' the internal homeostatic environment of the cell. Recent studies indicate that activation of some of these existing pathways is beneficial to whole-body metabolism. Now, mice with a muscle-specific autophagy deficiency are shown to adapt to stress through a newly discovered endocrine pathway involving fibroblast growth factor 21 (FGF21) (pages 83-92).