Fig. 2. Aging has a regional impact on WAT in golden hamsters.

A Mean ± SEM adipocyte size (μm²) in the (inguinal) SCAT and (epididymal) VAT of mock-treated young adult and aged hamsters. For SCAT, 2052 adipocytes in young adults and 2621 in aged adults were measured. For VAT, 1531 adipocytes in young adults and 1412 in aged adults were measured. Percentage differences in adipocyte size between young adult and aged hamsters are indicated. B mRNA expression levels (RT-qPCR assay) of Fasn and Acacb (involved in fatty acid synthesis), Scd1 and Fasd6 (involved in fatty acid desaturation), Lipe and Pnpla2/3 (involved in triglyceride degradation), and Cpt1a and Acadvl (involved in fatty acid oxidation) in the SCAT of mock-treated young adult and aged hamsters. C mRNA expression levels (RT-qPCR assay) of the inflammatory genes Ifng and Il1b in the SCAT of mock-treated young adult and aged hamsters. B, C Relative expression is presented as 2^−ΔΔCT (housekeeping gene: GusB, coding for glucuronidase beta). Data are expressed as the mean ± SEM, and individual replicates are shown (n = 6 animals per group). Groups were compared in a two-sided Mann–Whitney test; ^# indicates the P values for the comparison of young adults and aged adults (the effect of age: ^#P < 0.05, ^##P < 0.01 and ^####P < 0.0001). For intergroup differences, the threshold for statistical significance was set to P < 0.05.