Comparison of basal metabolic activities and hormonal sensitivities between mesenteric and epididymal adipocytes.

The mesenteric adipose tissue, which is present in a considerable amount in the rat but had not been used for the experiments, contained a larger number of adipocytes than the epididymal adipose tissue per wet weight of the tissue. The basal metabolic activities and the responses to epinephrine and insulin in the mesenteric adipocytes were essentially equal to those in the epididymal adipocytes. The mesenteric adipocytes are useful for elucidation of metabolism in white adipose tissue.