Hepatocyte nuclear factor 1b (HNF1b) is a transcription factor belonging to the HNF family. We aimed to investigate the role of HNF1b in white adipocyte differentiation. The expression of HNF1b was reduced in white adipose tissue (WAT) of both diet-induced and genetic obese mice and decreased during the process of 3T3-L1 adipocyte differentiation. Downregulation of HNF1b enhanced 3T3-L1 adipocyte differentiation and upregulation of HNF1b inhibited this process. Upregulation of HNF1b inhibited peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor γ (PPARγ) and its target gene expression, while downregulation of HNF1b increased those genes expression. Overexpression of PPARγ suppressed HNF1b upregulation-induced inhibition of adipocyte differentiation. HNF1b can directly bind with the promoter of PPARγ in 3T3-L1 cells, which was decreased after adipogenic differentiation. HNF1b promoted apoptotic and autophagic cell death in early differentiated adipocytes through regulation of cell cycle progress and cell death-related factors, and thus inhibited the process of mitotic clonal expansion (MCE). HNF1b acted as an antioxidant regulator through regulating various antioxidant enzymes via binding with antioxidant response element. Oxidant treatment suppressed HNF1b upregulation-induced inhibition of adipocyte differentiation. Overall, our results suggest that HNF1b is a novel negative regulator of adipocyte differentiation through regulation of PPARγ signaling, MCE and redox state.
