To examine the effect of a four-day fast on neutral glyceride mobilization in human adipocytes, subcutaneous abdominal fat tissue was obtained from ten human volunteers after an overnight fast and then after four days of fasting. Plasma insulin concentration decreased from 31 +/- 5 microU/ml before the four-day fast to 9 +/- 1 microU/ml after the fast (P less than 0.05). Plasma free fatty acid concentration increased from 13.9 +/- 1.3 to 23.6 +/- 3.2 mg/dl (P less than 0.05). Mean average cell size was similar before and after the four-day fast. Basal lipolysis increased threefold (P less than 0.005) regardless of cell size after four days of fasting. In contrast, isoproterenol (2 microM) stimulated maximum lipolysis was not increased after a four-day fast. The concentrations of isoproterenol required for a half maximum stimulation in the presence of 50 (7 microU/ml) and 8000 pM (1150 microU/ml) insulin were lower after a four-day fast (P less than 0.05, P less than 0.03, respectively) and were uninfluenced by average cell size. Basal and maximum insulin-stimulated glucose transport were similar after a four-day fast. However, glucose incorporation into neutral glycerides was reduced by 50 percent (P less than 0.02) following a four-day fast. The reduction was uninfluenced by average cell size. The data indicate that abdominal adipocytes after a four-day fast are metabolically adapted towards increased neutral glyceride mobilization by reducing glucose incorporation into neutral glycerides, increasing sensitivity of lipolysis to isoproterenol, and increasing basal lipolysis.