Modulation of -adrenoreceptor expression by tumor necrosis factor-␣ (TNF-␣) was investigated in murine 3T3-F442A adipocytes. TNF-␣ treatment of mature adipocytes decreased  3 -adrenoreceptor mRNA content in a time-and concentration-dependent manner, with a 8.5-fold decrease observed after a 6-h exposure to 300 pM TNF-␣.  1 -Adrenoreceptor mRNA abundance was slightly decreased by TNF-␣ treatment, while  2 -adrenoreceptor mRNA levels were potently induced (6-fold increase at 6 h). (؊)-[ 125 I]Iodocyanopindolol saturation and competition binding experiments indicated that TNF-␣ induced a 2-fold decrease in  3 -adrenoreceptor number, a nonsignificant reduction in  1 -subtype population, and a ϳ4.5-fold increase in  2 -adrenoreceptor density. This correlated with a lower EC 50 value measured for epinephrine in stimulating adenylyl cyclase, whereas the EC 50 value for norepinephrine increased. Nuclear run-on assays on isolated nuclei and mRNA stability measurements showed that TNF-␣ increased both  2 -adrenoreceptor gene transcription and  2 -adrenoreceptor mRNA half-life, while  1 -and  3 -adrenoreceptor gene expression was modulated only at the transcriptional level by the cytokine. These findings demonstrate a differential modulation by TNF-␣ of the three -adrenoreceptor subtypes in adipocytes, which may contribute to metabolic disorders induced by the cytokine in the adipocyte.Tumor necrosis factor-␣ (TNF-␣) 1 is a multifunctional cytokine that was originally identified as a tumoricidal protein (1). Subsequent investigations have shown that TNF-␣ was fundamentally involved in control of the growth, differentiation, and metabolism in several normal cells and tissues.A sum of work has been focused on the role of TNF-␣ in the regulation of adipocyte development and metabolism (1, 2). Thus, TNF-␣ strongly inhibits adipose conversion and even causes a dramatic dedifferentiation of adipocytes in culture (3-6). Moreover, it is also documented that TNF-␣ decreases the synthesis and activity of several proteins essential for lipogenesis and triglyceride accumulation in adipocytes. These include lipoprotein lipase (5, 7-9), acetyl-coenzyme A carboxylase (4, 10, 11), acyl-coenzyme A synthetase (12), stearoyl-coenzyme A desaturase (12), and the insulin-sensitive glucose transporter GLUT4 (13,14).In addition to the above effects on adipogenesis and reduction of de novo fatty acid synthesis, TNF-␣ also depletes triglycerides from adipocytes by directly increasing lipolysis (15-17). So far, the molecular mechanism by which the cytokine potentiates lipolysis remains unclear (17).Through activation of three -AR subtypes, catecholamines exert a key role in the regulation of lipid metabolism in adipocytes. They modulate cAMP-dependent processes such as lipolysis and the genetic control of the lipogenic and thermogenic pathways. As regards the pleiotropic effects of TNF-␣ on several metabolic pathways in adipocytes, and to the key role of the -AR system in lipid mobilization, it is possible that an interplay between TNF...