Relevance and consequence of chronic inflammation for obesity development

BACKGROUND: Increasing prevalence of morbid obesity accompanied by comorbidities like type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) led to a demand for improving therapeutic strategies and pharmacological intervention options. Apart from genetics, inflammation processes have been hypothesized to be of importance for the development of obesity and related aspects like insulin resistance. MAIN TEXT: Within this review, we provide an overview of the intricate interplay between chronic inflammation of the adipose tissue and the hypothalamus and the development of obesity. Further understanding of this relationship might improve the understanding of the underlying mechanism and may be of relevance for the establishment of new treatment strategies.