Abstract
Adipose tissue plays a pivotal role in energy storage, hormone secretion, and temperature control. Mammalian adipose tissue is largely divided into white adipose tissue and brown adipose tissue, although recent studies have discovered the existence of beige adipocytes. Adipose tissues are widespread over the whole body and each location shows distinctive metabolic features. Mice are used as a representative experimental model system in metabolic studies due to their numerous advantages. Importantly, the adipose tissues of experimental animals and humans are not perfectly matched, and each adipose tissue exhibits both similar and specific characteristics. Nevertheless, the diversity and characteristics of mouse adipose tissue have not yet been comprehensively summarized. This review summarizes diverse information about the different types of adipose tissue being studied in mouse models. The types and characteristics of adipocytes were described, and each adipose tissue was classified by type, and features such as its distribution, origin, differences from humans, and metabolic characteristics were described. In particular, the distribution of widely studied adipose tissues was illustrated so that researchers can comprehensively grasp its location. Also, the adipose tissues misused or confusingly used among researchers were described. This review will provide researchers with comprehensive information and cautions needed to study adipose tissues in mouse models.
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Acknowledgements
The author would like to thank Minsun Ahn for artworks. This study was supported by grants from the Basic Science Research Program through the National Research Foundation of Korea, funded by the Ministry of Education (2016R1D1A1B01012515) and from the Gachon University research fund (Grant No. GCU-202008420012).
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Chun, KH. Mouse model of the adipose organ: the heterogeneous anatomical characteristics. Arch. Pharm. Res. 44, 857–875 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12272-021-01350-6
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12272-021-01350-6