Suppression of CD36 attenuates adipogenesis with a reduction of P2X7 expression in 3T3-L1 cells

Adipogenesis is a process of differentiation from preadipocyte into adipocyte, and is regulated by several transcription factors, including the peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma (PPARγ) and the CCAAT-enhancer-binding protein alpha (C/EBPα). CD36 is a membrane protein which contributes to the metabolic disorders such as obesity. Although the previous study demonstrated CD36 participated in the progression of adipogenesis, the mechanism is still unclear. We report here that knockdown of CD36 expression by CD36 small interfering RNA (siRNA) resulted in a reduction of adipocyte differentiation and adipogenic protein expression. In addition, purinergic receptor P2X, ligand-gated ion channel 7 (P2X7) was downregulated in CD36-knockdown 3T3-L1 cells, suggesting that the suppression of CD36 attenuates adipogenesis via the P2X7 pathway in 3T3-L1 cells.