Abstract
Brown adipose tissue is structurally and functionally different from white adipose tissue. Although abundant at birth, in the adult it exists only as small depots at specific locations such as the interscapular region of rodents. The brown colour of the tissue is due to an abundance of mitochondria. In contrast to white adipocytes, the adipocytes forming the brown adipose tissue contain numerous lipid droplets which differ greatly in size and are therefore called plurivacuolar (or plurilocal) adipocytes. Brown adipocytes are polygonal and as a rule smaller in size (20–40μm) than white adipocytes. The brown adipose tissue is compact and rich in capillaries and sympathetic nerve fibres.
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Pavelka, M., Roth, J. (2010). Brown Adipose Tissue. In: Functional Ultrastructure. Springer, Vienna. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-211-99390-3_150
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-211-99390-3_150
Publisher Name: Springer, Vienna
Print ISBN: 978-3-211-99389-7
Online ISBN: 978-3-211-99390-3
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