| Summary: | Adipose tissue is now recognized as a widely dispersed secretory organ that exhibits autocrine, paracrine, and endocrine properties, and plays a significant role in obesity, the most common health problem in industrialized countries. In Adipose Tissue Protocols, Gérard Ailhaud and a team of laboratory experts and clinicians describe in step-by-step detail the major techniques needed for the study of adipose tissue and cells. Drawn from both in vivo and in vitro studies, these readily reproducible methods cover a broad range of techniques, including the choice of adipose tissue depot and of morphological techniques for work on both brown adipose tissue (BAT) and white adipose tissue (WAT). Major treatment is accorded the isolation, subcellular fractionation, and transfection of low density adipocytes, as well as the metabolic aspects of nutrient uptake and key assays of nutrient and ion fluxes. Also covered are: biopsies and quantification of lipid-related mRNAs; cultures of adipose precursor cells from WAT and BAT; measurements of adipose secretory products; assessment of WAT metabolism in vivo; and assays of lipid-related enzymes. Innovative and highly practical, Adipose Tissue Protocols offers endocrinologists, physiologists, cell biologists, and pharmacologists a gold-standard collection of proven methods for effective nutritional, physiological, and molecular-level research on adipose tissue
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