title: Adipose depots differ in cellularity, adipokines produced, gene expression, and cell systems.
abstract: The race to manage the health concerns related to excess fat deposition has spawned a proliferation of clinical and basic research efforts to understand variables including dietary uptake, metabolism, and lipid deposition by adipocytes. A full appreciation of these variables must also include a depot-specific understanding of content and location in order to elucidate mechanisms governing cellular development and regulation of fat deposition. Because adipose tissue depots contain various cell types, differences in the cellularity among and within adipose depots are presently being documented to ascertain functional differences. This has led to the possibility of there being, within any one adipose depot, cellular distinctions that essentially result in adipose depots within depots. The papers comprising this issue will underscore numerous differences in cellularity (development, histogenesis, growth, metabolic function, regulation) of different adipose depots. Such information is useful in deciphering adipose depot involvement both in normal physiology and in pathology. Obesity, diabetes, metabolic syndrome, carcass composition of meat animals, performance of elite athletes, physiology/pathophysiology of aging, and numerous other diseases might be altered with a greater understanding of adipose depots and the cells that comprise them-including stem cells-during initial development and subsequent periods of normal/abnormal growth into senescence. Once thought to be dormant and innocuous, the adipocyte is emerging as a dynamic and influential cell and research will continue to identify complex physiologic regulation of processes involved in adipose depot physiology.
authors: Department of Animal Sciences; Washington State University ; Pullman, WA USA.
authors: Michael V
authors: MV
authors: Dodson
authors: Department of Animal Sciences; Washington State University ; Pullman, WA USA.
authors: Min
authors: M
authors: Du
authors: Department of Animal Sciences; Washington State University ; Pullman, WA USA ; College of Animal Science; South China Agricultural University ; Guangzhou, PR China.
authors: Songbo
authors: S
authors: Wang
authors: Program in Cellular and Molecular Biosciences/Department of Animal Sciences; Auburn University ; Auburn, AL USA.
authors: Werner G
authors: WG
authors: Bergen
authors: Abitec Corporation ; Columbus, OH USA.
authors: Melinda
authors: M
authors: Fernyhough-Culver
authors: University of Alberta ; Edmonton, AB Canada.
authors: Urmila
authors: U
authors: Basu
authors: Akeso Health LLC ; Decatur, GA USA.
authors: Sylvia P
authors: SP
authors: Poulos
authors: Department of Animal and Dairy Science; University of Georgia ; Athens, GA USA.
authors: Gary J
authors: GJ
authors: Hausman
keywords: adipocyte gene expression; adipokine; adipose depots; adipose lineage cell; cellularity