Isolation and characterization of omental adipose progenitor cells in children: a potential tool to unravel the pathogenesis of metabolic syndrome.

Evidence from laboratory and animal studies provides groundwork for understanding mechanisms and potential before human studies continue.

• Level A · Stronger Clinical Evidence
• Level B · Emerging clinical evidence with positive signals
• Level C · Early human research exploring benefits
• Level D · Scientific groundwork from lab and animal studies
• Emerging · Emerging topic under active research

Abstract (original English)

Background/aim Visceral adipose tissue plays a pivotal role in the pathogenesis of metabolic syndrome. Several investigations refer to the physiology of subcutaneous and visceral adipose tissue of adult obese subjects, focusing on the characterization of adipose-derived stem cells and their differentiation capacity. To date, no study has been carried out on visceral adipose tissue of children, the main limitation being the amount of fat tissue available. The aim of this investigation was to establish a method to successfully isolate adipose progenitor cells from very small specimens of omental fat obtained from children undergoing abdominal surgery. Methods A previously described procedure employed to extract adipose progenitors from large amounts of lipoaspirate was modified. 0.5-cm(3) specimens of omental fat were collected from 13 children and 2 newborns. Primary, secondary and higher passaged adipocytic progenitor cell cultures were established. Immunophenotyping of the generated lines was carried out by flow cytometry analysis. Differentiation experiments concerning the adipogenic phenotype were conducted. Results A feasible method for isolating adipose progenitors from pediatric specimens of omental fat was established. Cells showed a fibroblast-like appearance consistent with that of mesenchymal stem cells obtained from bone marrow. The mesenchymal phenotype was confirme

Evidence level

Evidence from laboratory and animal studies provides groundwork for understanding mechanisms and potential before human studies continue.

Browse all related research

Filter the research library by this study's title keywords, author, or publication year.