Brown Adipose Tissue Controls Skeletal Muscle Function via the Secretion of Myostatin (Cell Metabolism)

Skeletal muscle and brown adipose tissue (BAT) are functionally interlinked. Kong et al. report on the intriguing role of the transcription factor IRF4 in BAT to mediate BAT-muscle crosstalk through the muscle function inhibitor, myostatin. Thermoneutrality or loss of IRF4 results in elevated serum myostatin levels and decreased exercise capacity.