title: Cold-induced activation of brown adipose tissue and adipose angiogenesis in mice.
abstract: Exposure of humans and rodents to cold activates thermogenic activity in brown adipose tissue (BAT). This protocol describes a mouse model to study the activation of BAT and angiogenesis in adipose tissues by cold acclimation. After a 1-week exposure to 4 °C, adult C57BL/6 mice show an obvious transition from subcutaneous white adipose tissue (WAT) into brown-like adipose tissue (BRITE). The BRITE phenotype persists after continuous cold exposure, and by the end of week 5 BRITE contains a high number of uncoupling protein-1-positive mitochondria, a characteristic feature of BAT. During the transition from WAT into BRITE, the vascular density is markedly increased owing to the activation of angiogenesis. In BAT, cold exposure stimulates thermogenesis by increasing the mitochondrial content and metabolic rate. BAT and the increased metabolic rate result in a lean phenotype. This protocol provides an outstanding opportunity to study the molecular mechanisms that control adipose mass.
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology, Tumor and Cell Biology, Karolinska Institute, Stockholm, Sweden.
authors.forename: Sharon
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Lim
authors.forename: Jennifer
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Honek
authors.forename: Yuan
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Xue
authors.forename: Takahiro
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Seki
authors.forename: Ziquan
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Cao
authors.forename: Patrik
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Andersson
authors.forename: Xiaojuan
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.forename: Kayoko
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Hosaka
authors.forename: Yihai
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Cao
mesh_terms: D000064:Acclimatization / Q000502:physiology*; D002001:Adipose Tissue, Brown / Q000098:blood supply* / Q000502:physiology*; D000818:Animals; D003080:Cold Temperature; D006652:Histological Techniques; D051379:Mice; D008810:Mice, Inbred C57BL; D023421:Models, Animal; D018919:Neovascularization, Physiologic / Q000502:physiology*; D022722:Thermogenesis / Q000502:physiology*