Myeloid Gi signaling acts as a weight-independent immunometabolic switch controlling systemic insulin sensitivity

Metabolic dysfunction does not necessarily correlate with adiposity. Metabolically healthy obese individuals and insulin-resistant lean individuals represent a fundamental paradox that implicates immune cell intrinsic mechanisms in the pathogenesis of type 2 diabetes. Here, we identify myeloid Gi signaling as a previously unrecognized determinant of whole-body glucose homeostasis. Single-cell transcriptomic analysis of adipose tissue macrophages from obese mice and humans reveals marked alteration in Gnai isoform, suggesting that myeloid Gi signaling is functionally engaged during metabolic disease. Using complementary myeloid-specific rodent models of Gi inhibition (pertussis toxin) and chemogenetic Gi activation (DREADD), we demonstrate that inhibition of Gi signaling improves glucose tolerance and enhances insulin sensitivity under both regular chow and high-fat diet conditions, independent of body weight and energy expenditure. Whereas acute Gi activation in lean mice modestly enhances glucose disposal, the same intervention during diet-induced obesity markedly impairs systemic glucose homeostasis, revealing context-dependent pathway function. Mechanistically, Gi inhibition amplifies macrophage cAMP–CREB signaling to drive IL-6 production, engaging STAT3– and AMPK-dependent pathways in adipose tissue and skeletal muscle to support insulin action. Conversely, Gi activation engages a previously uncharacterized Gβγ–mTOR/AKT–JNK cascade, driving IL-1β secretion that directly impairs insulin signaling in adipocytes and myotubes. Pharmacological IL-6 receptor blockade abolishes the metabolic benefits of Gi inhibition, whereas IL-1 receptor antagonism fully rescues Gi activation–induced metabolic dysfunction, establishing these cytokines as obligate downstream effectors. This signaling architecture is conserved in human macrophages, and ATAC-seq profiling reveals chromatin remodeling at cAMP–CREB and IL-6 regulatory pathway loci, consistent with the observed transcriptional reprogramming.

Together, these findings establish myeloid Gi signaling as a weight-independent immunometabolic switch that couples opposing cytokine programs to systemic insulin sensitivity and identify this pathway as a therapeutic target in obesity-associated metabolic disease.