Adipose (fat) tissue plays an active role in the body’s metabolism—not just storing fat but also influencing energy use and hormone activity. As obesity and type 2 diabetes rates increase, it is important to understand how fat tissue behaves and affects health.
This Perspective discusses recent research by Pinho et al 2025, exploring how mitochondria (the cell’s energy producers) work in different types of fat tissue in people with obesity and insulin resistance, while outlining the impact weight-loss management through bariatric surgery impacts adipose tissue energetics. It emphasizes the need to better understand how fat cells produce energy.
Key Findings
1. Different Types of Fat:
– Subcutaneous fat (under the skin) and omental fat (deep belly fat) are biologically different.
– Omental fat is more active in energy use than subcutaneous fat.
2. Fat Tissue Mitochondrial Energetics in Obesity:
– People with obesity, especially those with insulin resistance or type 2 diabetes, show reduced adipose tissue mitochondrial energetics.
– This impaired functionality may contribute to metabolic disease progression.
3. Effects of Bariatric Surgery:
– After weight-loss surgery, some aspects of mitochondrial function in fat tissue can improve.
– However, not all patients respond the same, and further research is needed to understand why.
Adipose tissue bioenergetics is an underexplored area with important implications for understanding obesity, insulin resistance, and the effects of treatments like bariatric surgery. Future research should focus on how mitochondrial activity in fat changes with disease progression and treatment to develop more targeted therapies.
Noone J. The fat factor: rethinking adipose energetics with obesity, insulin resistance and surgery. Journal of Physiology. 2025 May 5. https://physoc.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1113/JP288746
John Noone, PhD is an Assistant Professor in Sport & Exercise Physiology in the Department of Physical Education and Sport Sciences, University of Limerick. Contact: Email: john.noone@ul.ie UL Pure: John Noone – University of Limerick X:@JohnNoone4
ResearchGate: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/John-Noone?ev=hdr_xprf
ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5733-4816
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