Arkansas Children's Nutrition Center, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Little Rock, AR, United States.
Department of Pediatrics, College of Medicine, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Little Rock, AR, United States.
Front Endocrinol (Lausanne). 2021 Mar 12;12:599134. doi: 10.3389/fendo.2021.599134. eCollection 2021.
Adipose tissue (AT) is classified based on its location, physiological and functional characteristics. Although there is a clear demarcation of anatomical and molecular features specific to white (WAT) and brown adipose tissue (BAT), the factors that uniquely differentiate beige AT (BeAT) remain to be fully elaborated. The ubiquitous presence of different types of AT and the inability to differentiate brown and beige adipocytes because of similar appearance present a challenge when classifying them one way or another. Here we will provide an overview of the latest advances in BeAT, BAT, and WAT identification based on transcript markers described in the literature. The review paper will highlight some of the difficulties these markers pose and will offer new perspectives on possible transcript-specific identification of BeAT. We hope that this will advance the understanding of the biology of different ATs. In addition, concrete strategies to distinguish different types of AT may be relevant to track the efficacy and mechanisms around interventions aimed to improve metabolic health and thwart excessive weight gain.
脂肪组织（AT）根据其位置、生理和功能特征进行分类。虽然白色（WAT）和棕色脂肪组织（BAT）具有明确的解剖学和分子特征界限，但独特区分米色脂肪组织（BeAT）的因素仍有待充分阐述。不同类型的 AT 普遍存在，并且由于外观相似，无法区分棕色和米色脂肪细胞，这在对它们进行分类时带来了挑战。在这里，我们将根据文献中描述的转录标记物，概述 BeAT、BAT 和 WAT 鉴定的最新进展。综述文章将强调这些标记物带来的一些困难，并为 BeAT 的可能转录特异性鉴定提供新的视角。我们希望这将促进对不同 AT 生物学的理解。此外，区分不同类型 AT 的具体策略可能与跟踪旨在改善代谢健康和阻止体重过度增加的干预措施的疗效和机制有关。
