Review
Copyright ©The Author(s) 2019. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
World J Stem Cells. Mar 26, 2019; 11(3): 147-166
Published online Mar 26, 2019. doi: 10.4252/wjsc.v11.i3.147
Adipose-derived stromal/stem cells from different adipose depots in obesity development
Karina Ribeiro Silva, Leandra Santos Baptista
Karina Ribeiro Silva, Leandra Santos Baptista, Laboratory of Tissue Bioengineering, Directory of Metrology Applied to Life Sciences, National Institute of Metrology, Quality and Technology, Duque de Caxias, RJ 25250-020, Brazil
Karina Ribeiro Silva, Leandra Santos Baptista, Post-Graduation Program of Biotechnology, National Institute of Metrology, Quality and Technology, Duque de Caxias, RJ 25250-020, Brazil
Leandra Santos Baptista, Multidisciplinary Center for Biological Research (Numpex-Bio), Federal University of Rio de Janeiro Campus Duque de Caxias, Duque de Caxias, RJ 25245-390, Brazil
Author contributions: Silva KR drafted the article, contributed to the conception and design of the manuscript, wrote the article and approved the final version; Baptista LS drafted the article, contributed to the conception and design of the manuscript, contributed to the writing of the manuscript, made critical revisions related to relevant intellectual content of the manuscript and approved the final version of the article.
Conflict-of-interest statement: The authors declare no conflict of interest.
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article which was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Leandra Santos Baptista, PhD, Professor, Laboratory of Tissue Bioengineering, Directory of Metrology Applied to Life Sciences, National Institute of Metrology, Quality and Technology, Duque de Caxias, RJ 25250-020, Brazil. leandra.baptista@gmail.com
Telephone: +55-21-21453151
Received: September 29, 2018
Peer-review started: September 29, 2018
First decision: October 19, 2018
Revised: January 27, 2019
Accepted: February 28, 2019
Article in press: February 28, 2019
Published online: March 26, 2019
Abstract

The increasing prevalence of obesity is alarming because it is a risk factor for cardiovascular and metabolic diseases (such as type 2 diabetes). The occurrence of these comorbidities in obese patients can arise from white adipose tissue (WAT) dysfunctions, which affect metabolism, insulin sensitivity and promote local and systemic inflammation. In mammals, WAT depots at different anatomical locations (subcutaneous, preperitoneal and visceral) are highly heterogeneous in their morpho-phenotypic profiles and contribute differently to homeostasis and obesity development, depending on their ability to trigger and modulate WAT inflammation. This heterogeneity is likely due to the differential behavior of cells from each depot. Numerous studies suggest that adipose-derived stem/stromal cells (ASC; referred to as adipose progenitor cells, in vivo) with depot-specific gene expression profiles and adipogenic and immunomodulatory potentials are keys for the establishment of the morpho-functional heterogeneity between WAT depots, as well as for the development of depot-specific responses to metabolic challenges. In this review, we discuss depot-specific ASC properties and how they can contribute to the pathophysiology of obesity and metabolic disorders, to provide guidance for researchers and clinicians in the development of ASC-based therapeutic approaches.

Keywords: White adipose tissue, Metabolic diseases, Obesity, Adipose-derived stromal/stem cells, Adipose depot, Inflammation

Core tip: White adipose tissue (WAT) depots at different anatomical locations are highly heterogeneous in morphology and phenotype, and contribute differently to the development of obesity and metabolic disorders. Here, we discuss the role of adipose-derived stem/stromal cells (ASC) in the development of obesity and metabolic disorders, by reviewing the data suggesting that depot-specific ASC/adipose progenitor cells help to develop the specific responses of each WAT depot to metabolic challenges. In particular, we address the importance of ASC-dependent immunomodulation in the inflammatory response associated with obesity, providing guidance for future research on the use ASC-based therapeutic approaches.