We investigate neuroimmune molecular mechanisms underlying obesity.
The Domingos laboratory researches neuroimmune mechanisms underlying obesity. They discovered neuro-adipose junctions, between white adipocytes and sympathetic neurons, that are necessary and sufficient for fat mass reduction via norepinephrine (NE) signalling. Moreover, they discovered Sympathetic neuron-Associated Macrophages (SAMs) that import and metabolize NE. Abrogation of SAM function promotes long-term amelioration of obesity independently of food intake. These findings inspired the development of a new class of anti-obesity compounds named sympathofacilitators, which do not enter the brain, nor have the typical cardiovascular side effects of centrally acting sympathomimetic drugs. Sympathofacilitator drugs act as an energy sink by coupling thermogenesis to active heat dissipation. Ana Domingos is a member of the advisory board of Cell Metabolism and her lab has been funded by HHMI, Wellcome Trust, ERC, HFSP, EMBO, among others.
© Guttenplan, Kevin A. et al. (2018) Play It Again, SAM: Macrophages Control Peripheral Fat Metabolism, Trends in Immunology, and Conor A. Bradley (2017). Specialized macrophages contribute to obesity. Nature Reviews Endocrinology.
© Lady Margaret Hall / Dominik Osvald / www.dominikosvald.com
Our team
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Ana Domingos
Associate Professor of Neuroscience
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Chelsea Larabee
Postdoctoral Research Scientist
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Samuel Malone
Postdoctoral Research Scientist
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Noelia Martínez Sánchez
Postdoctoral Research Scientist
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Gitalee Sarker
Novo Nordisk Research Fellow
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Oliver Neely
DPhil Student in Cardiovascular Science
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Emma Haberman
IITM Wellcome Trust DPhil Student
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Conan O'Brien
BHF Cardiovascular Science DPhil Candidate
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Yitao Zhu
DPhil Student
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Berivan Sahin
Visiting Student
Funders
The Domingos Lab is proud to be sponsored by the following funding bodies:
Features
The paper, 'Brain-Sparing Sympathofacilitators Mitigate Obesity without Adverse Cardiovascular Effects' has been featured in:
- Alan Morris (2020): Unravelling novel weight loss mechanisms. Nature Reviews Endocrinology.
- Jung Dae Kim and Sabrina Diano (2020): A Sympathetic Treatment for Obesity. Cell Metabolism.
The paper, 'Sympathetic neuron-associated macrophages contribute to obesity by importing and metabolizing norepinephrine' has been featured in:
- Stefan Jung: Year in Review — Macrophages and monocytes in 2017: Macrophages and monocytes: of tortoises and hares. Nature Reviews Immunology 2017
- Conor A. Bradley (2017). Specialized macrophages contribute to obesity. Nature Reviews Endocrinology.
- Making Fat Mice Lean: Novel Immune Cells Control Neurons Responsible For Fat Breakdown. ScienMag.
- Wei Wong (14 Nov 2017). Fat expansion through norepinephrine catabolism. Editor's Choice, Science Signalling.
- Seth Thomas Scanlon (17 Nov 2017), Unusual macrophages contribute to obesity. Editor's Choice, Science
- Guttenplan, Kevin A. et al. (2018) Play It Again, SAM: Macrophages Control Peripheral Fat Metabolism, Trends in Immunology
- Michael P Czech (7 Nov 2017), Macrophages dispose of catecholamines in adipose tissue. Nature Medicine
The paper, 'Sympathetic neuro-adipose connections mediate leptin-driven lipolysis' has been featured in:
- Johan Ruud & Jens Bruening (2015). Metabolism: Light on leptin link to lipolysis. Nature
- Natasha Bray (2015). Zapping fat in WAT, Nature Reviews Neuroscience
- News and Views (2015). A closer look at the nerves that slim down your fat cells, Science
- Luis Varela, Tamas L. Horvath (2015). A Sympathetic View on Fat by Leptin, Cell
- Qingchun Tong (2015) Exceptional F1000 Physiology, Technical Advance
- Mark Bothwell (2015) Very Good F1000 Neuroscience, New Finding
The first PhD student of the Domingos lab to graduate, Roksana Pirzgalska, has been featured in:
Interviews
In the media
Media coverage of Nature Medicine 2017, Nature Communications 2017, and Cell 2015:
Speaking at
GRC, Neuroimmunology in Organismic Function: Shared Mechanisms and Reciprocal Interactions, California, USA, January 24 - 29 2021. Postponed.
GRC, Gordon Research Conference: Immune System in Health, Disease and Therapy, Castelldefels, Spain, Postponed to 2022.
Past Meetings
EMBO Meeting - Neural control of metabolism and eating behaviour
Check out some pictures from the event here.
Type 2 Immunity in Homeostasis and Disease - 21-22 February 2019
EMBO Workshop, Organ crosstalk in energy balance and metabolic disease, Sancti Petri, Chiclana, Cádiz, Spain, April 8-11 2019
Aegean Conferences, 4th International Conference on ImmunoMetabolism: Molecular and Cellular Immunology of Metabolism, Rhodes, Greece May 28 - June 2 2019
ICMS, 14th World Congress on Inflammation (WCI2019), Sydney, September 15-19 2019. Plenary speakers included Janelle Ayres (The Salk Institute), Daniel Cua (Merck), Vishva M. Dixit (Genentech, Inc.), Florent Ginhoux (Singapore Immunology Network), Elaine Holmes (Imperial College London), Paul Kubes (University of Calgary), Luke O'Neill (Trinity College Dubin), Michal Schwartz (Weizmann Institute of Science) and Carola Vinuesa (Australian National University)
Cell Symposia, Neuro-Immune Axis: Reciprocal Regulation in Development, Health and Disease, Long Beach, California, September 22-24 2019
Nature Conferences, Advances in Metabolic Communication, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, October 15 - 18 2019
Gastronauts Zoom-side Chat: Why we self medicate, Virtual Meeting, Tuesday 7 April 2020
Neuroscience School of Advanced Studies (NSAS), Neuroscience of Obesity, Venice, Italy, June 6 - 13 2020
American Diabetes Association, 80th Scientific Sessions (#ADA2020), Virtual Meeting "Immunity, Metabolism, and Diabetes", June 13 2020 5pm
Cell Symposia, Metabolites in Signalling and Disease, Lisbon, Portugal, October 25 - 27 2020
Naomi Berrie Diabetes Center Seminars at Columbia University, “Sympathetic Neuroimmunity in Obesity”, November 12 2020
MRC London Institute of Medical Sciences, Inter-organ Communication in Health and Disease Virtual Symposium, November 24 2020
Keystone Symposia, Integrating Metabolism and Immunity, January 25 - 28 2021. See programme here.
Keystone Symposia, Obesity: From Cell to Patient, February 1 -3 2021. See programme here.