Quantification of adipocyte numbers following adipose tissue remodeling

To analyze the capacity of white and brown adipose tissue remodeling, we developed two mouse lines to label, quantitatively trace, and ablate white, brown, and brite/beige adipocytes at different ambient temperatures. We show here that the brown adipocytes are recruited first and reach a peak after 1 week of cold stimulation followed by a decline during prolonged cold exposure. On the contrary, brite/beige cell numbers plateau after 3 weeks of cold exposure. At thermoneutrality, brown adipose tissue, in spite of being masked by a white-like morphology, retains its brown-like physiology, as Ucp1(+) cells can be recovered immediately upon beta3-adrenergic stimulation. Wefurther demonstrate that the recruitment of Ucp1(+) cells in response to cold is driven by existing adipocytes. In contrast, the regeneration of the interscapular brown adipose tissue following ablation of Ucp1(+) cells is driven by de novo differentiation.

Automated summary

The study reveals that brown adipocytes are recruited and peak after 1 week of cold stimulation before declining, while brite/beige cell numbers plateau after 3 weeks of cold exposure. At thermoneutrality, brown adipose tissue retains its brown-like physiology despite a white-like morphology. The recruitment of Ucp1(+) cells in response to cold is driven by existing adipocytes, while regeneration following ablation is driven by de novo differentiation.