5aCc). via the PRIDE partner repository with the dataset identifier PXD025032. The published adipocyte specific ribosomal profiling dataset could be downloaded at this link (https://ars.els-cdn.com/content/image/1-s2.0-S1550413118301839-mmc2.xlsx). Full scans for all those western blots are provided in Supplementary Information. Source data for all those biochemical, cellular, and animal experiments are provided. All other data are available from the corresponding author on affordable request. Abstract Adaptive thermogenesis has attracted much attention because of its ability to raise systemic energy expenditure and counter obesity and diabetes1,2,3. Recent data have indicated that thermogenic excess fat cells utilize creatine to stimulate futile substrate cycling, dissipating chemical energy as warmth4,5. This Esm1 model was based on the super-stoichiometric relationship between creatine added to mitochondria and O2 consumed. Here we provide direct evidence GANT61 for the molecular basis of this futile creatine cycling (FCC) activity. Thermogenic excess fat cells contain strong phosphocreatine phosphatase activity, attributable to tissue-nonspecific alkaline phosphatase (TNAP). TNAP hydrolyzes phosphocreatine to initiate a futile cycle of creatine dephosphorylation and phosphorylation. Amazingly, unlike in other cells, TNAP is usually localized to mitochondria of thermogenic excess fat cells, where FCC occurs. TNAP expression is usually powerfully induced when animals are subjected to chilly exposure. Moreover, the essential role of TNAP in the FCC is usually illustrated by the loss of this cycle when TNAP is usually inhibited in isolated mitochondria. Finally, genetic ablation of TNAP in adipocytes GANT61 reduces whole body energy expenditure and causes rapid-onset obesity, with no switch in movement or feeding behavior of the animals. These data illustrate the crucial role of TNAP as a phosphocreatine phosphatase in the FCC. Main Adipose tissues have gained enormous interest because of the tight linkage between obesity and metabolic disorders such as type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, and many cancers1. Two special types of excess fat cells, brown and beige adipocytes, are notable for their outstanding ability to oxidize biological fuels and to support adaptive thermogenesis2,3. These two types of thermogenic excess fat cells utilize futile cycles to dissipate chemical energy in the form of warmth without performing mechanical or chemical work4. Accordingly, they both serve as a physiological defense against hypothermia, obesity, and obesity-linked metabolic disorders. Importantly, the presence of functional thermogenic adipocytes in human adults is now well-established6C8. Despite the important metabolic functions of adaptive thermogenesis, its GANT61 molecular mechanisms are not fully comprehended. While uncoupling protein 1 (UCP1) is the most recognized thermogenic effector9,10, it is required for defense of body temperature only on a pure genetic background in mice11,12. knockout mice on a mixed genetic background can tolerate chilly exposure with no loss of core body temperature. Moreover, recent work exhibited that even within inbred strains of mice, brown excess fat GANT61 without UCP1 suffers severe loss/damage to the entire electron transport chain of mitochondria upon chilly exposure13. Hence, at least some portion of the loss of defense against hypothermia due to the genetic absence of UCP1 must now be reconsidered mechanistically. New pathways of thermogenesis in adipose tissues have been discovered in the last several years14,15. Previously, we explained a pathway in which creatine (Cr) and phosphocreatine (PCr) are in a futile cycle, dissipating the high energy charge of PCr, without performing any mechanical or chemical work5. We have thus named this the futile creatine cycle (FCC). Furthermore, biochemical, pharmacological and genetic evidence indicates that this pathway is usually a very important component of adipose tissue thermogenesis5,16C18. Proteomic and transcriptomic data also suggest that this pathway is usually important for thermogenesis in human excess fat19,20, while cultured human brown/beige excess fat cells show a profound suppression of thermogenic respiration when creatine metabolism is usually inhibited5. Despite the apparent physiological importance of the FCC, crucial questions concerning.