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Review
. 2023 Apr 26:11:1188844.
doi: 10.3389/fcell.2023.1188844. eCollection 2023.

Adipose tissue expansion in obesity, health, and disease

Ursula White  1
Affiliations
Review

Adipose tissue expansion in obesity, health, and disease

Ursula White. Front Cell Dev Biol. .

Abstract

White adipose tissue (WAT) expands under physiological conditions via an increase in adipocyte size (hypertrophy) and/or number (hyperplasia; adipogenesis), and the ability of WAT to expand to accommodate energy demands is a significant determinant of metabolic health status. Obesity is associated with impaired WAT expansion and remodeling, which results in the deposition of lipids to other non-adipose organs, leading to metabolic derangements. Although increased hyperplasia has been implicated as a cornerstone in promoting healthy WAT expansion, recent developments suggest that the role of adipogenesis as a contributing factor in the transition from impaired subcutaneous WAT expansion to impaired metabolic health remains up for debate. This mini-review will summarize recent developments and highlight emerging concepts on the features of WAT expansion and turnover, and the significance in obesity, health, and disease.

Keywords: adipocyte; adipogenesis; adipose expansion; adipose tissue; human; metabolic health; obesity.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

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