Morphological and inflammatory changes in visceral adipose tissue during obesity

Xavier S. Revelo, Helen Luck, Shawn Winer, Daniel A. Winer

Research output: Contribution to journalReview articlepeer-review

55 Scopus citations

Abstract

Obesity is a major health burden worldwide and is a major factor in the development of insulin resistance and metabolic complications such as type II diabetes. Chronic nutrient excess leads to visceral adipose tissue (VAT) expansion and dysfunction in an active process that involves the adipocytes, their supporting matrix, and immune cell infiltrates. These changes contribute to adipose tissue hypoxia, adipocyte cell stress, and ultimately cell death. Accumulation of lymphocytes, macrophages, and other immune cells around dying adipocytes forms the so-called "crown-like structure", a histological hallmark of VAT in obesity. Cross talk between immune cells in adipose tissue dictates the overall inflammatory response, ultimately leading to the production of pro-inflammatory mediators which directly induce insulin resistance in VAT. In this review, we summarize recent studies demonstrating the dramatic changes that occur in visceral adipose tissue during obesity leading to low-grade chronic inflammation and metabolic disease.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)93-101
Number of pages9
JournalEndocrine Pathology
Volume25
Issue number1
DOIs
StatePublished - Mar 2014
Externally publishedYes

Bibliographical note

Funding Information:
Acknowledgments This work was supported in part by CIHR grant 119414 (DW), and CDA grants OG-3-12-3844 (DW) and CS-5-12-3886 (DW). XR is the recipient of a Banting & Best Diabetes Centre Fellowship (Funded by Eli Lilly Canada). The authors have declared that no conflict of interest exists.

Keywords

  • Diabetes
  • Immunology
  • Inflammation
  • Obesity
  • Visceral adipose tissue

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