Table 1.
Adipocyte subpopulations in white adipose tissue
| Species | Gender | Depot | Subpopulationa | Markers | Pathways | Reference |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mouse (C57BL/6J) | males | WAT (epididymal) | lipogenic adipocyte (LGA) | Acaca, Acly, Fasn, Dgat1/2 | triglyceride biosynthesis | Sárvári et al.123 |
| lipid-scavenging adipocyte (LSA) | Car3, Apoe, Cd36 | triglyceride handling | ||||
| stressed lipid-scavenging adipocyte (SLSA) | Apoe, Cd36, Hif1a, Ddr2 | leptin synthesis + triglyceride handling + stress responses | ||||
| male + female | WAT (inguinal + perigonadal) | mAd1 | Ebf2, Pck1 | insulin signaling + lipid handling + thermogenesis | Emont et al.121 | |
| mAd2 | Sorbs2, Crim1 | Ca2+ signaling + organization of cell-substrate junction | ||||
| mAd3 | Apoe, campk1d | OxPhos + lipid handling | ||||
| mAd4 | Cacna1a, Fgf1, Lep | PPAR and leptin signaling + ECM remodeling + stress response signaling | ||||
| mAd5 | Acss2, Prune2, Acly | lipogenesis + triglyceride biosynthesis | ||||
| mAd6 | Mt2, Casp4, Bcl3 | stress response + autophagy | ||||
| Human | men + women | WAT (subcutaneous + abdominal) | AdipoLEP | LEP, DDR2, TNS1 | leptin signaling + ECM remodeling | Bäckdahl et al.150 |
| AdipoPLIN | PLIN1/4, LIPE, DGAT1/2 | lipid biosynthesis and lipolysis | ||||
| AdipoSAA | SAA1/2, MGLL, AGPAT2 | retinol metabolism + FA handling | ||||
| men + women | WAT (subcutaneous + abdominal) | hAd1 | AFF3, WDPCP | organization of cell-substrate junction + MAPK/Rap1/EGFR signaling | Emont et al.121 | |
| hAd2 | NAV2, FABP4 | immune response to infection + autophagy | ||||
| hAd3 | SAA1, CAV2 | triglyceride biosynthesis + retinol metabolism | ||||
| hAd4 | GRIA4, ANKRD30A | leptin signaling + lipid handling + synaptic control | ||||
| hAd5 | ATP1B3, PGAP1 | insulin signaling + lipolysis regulation + HIF1a signaling | ||||
| hAd6 | EBF2, ZNF804A | lipolysis + thermogenic signaling + axon guidance | ||||
| hAd7 | THSD7B, AGMO | hormonal secretion + Ca2+ ion handling |
Distinguishing marker genes and pathways enriched in adipocyte subpopulations that have been identified in different depots of white adipose tissue using sc/snRNA-seq studies across mice and humans. LGA, lipogenic adipocyte; LSA, lipid-scavenging adipocyte; SLSA, stressed lipid-scavenging adipocyte.123 mAd1–6 are the mouse adipocyte subpopulations and hAd1–7 are the human adipocyte subpopulations defined in Emont et al.121 AdipoLEP, AdipoPLIN, and AdipoSAA subpopulations were defined by their expression of high levels of LEP, PLIN1/4, and SAA1/2, respectively.150
The subpopulations that seem to have similar markers and gene programs identified across different studies can be grouped as LGA, mAd1, AdipoPLIN, hAD4; LSA, mAd3/4, AdipoSAA, hAd3; SLSA, mAd5/6, hAd2/5; mAd2, hAd1/7.