Physiopathology and molecular mechanisms of obesity and related comorbidities.

The close relationship between metabolism and the immune system (immunometabolism) plays an essential role in the development of insulin resistance and T2DM associated with obesity states. Changes in the intestinal microbiota that occur in obese individuals are the first trigger of chronic low-grade inflammation that alters the functions of the tissues responsible for the control of the body's glucose homeostasis. Among them, the liver is a target organ of proinflammatory mediators from the intestine (endotoxins) and adipose tissue (cytokines, adipokines, free fatty acids and reactive lipid species) and is also able to recruit circulating monocytes that together with the resident macrophages (Kuppfer cells) contribute to exacerbate the intrahepatic inflammatory response. These conditions determine the progression of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), the central axis of the group's research lines.