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Advances in Adipocyte Biology Research and Their Relevance to Metabolic...
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Advances in Adipocyte Biology Research and Their Relevance to Metabolic Health

A special issue of Cells (ISSN 2073-4409).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 July 2026 | Viewed by 1008

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Aaron C. Brown

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
MaineHealth Institute for Research, Center for Molecular Medicine, Scarborough, ME 04074, USA
Interests: adipose tissue; obesity; inflammation; thermogenesis; adipokines

Special Issue Information

 Dear Colleagues,

Adipose tissue is essential for metabolic homeostasis and energy balance, with its dysregulation contributing to obesity, insulin resistance, and related metabolic disorders. This Special Issue will highlight cutting-edge research on adipocyte biology, including advancements in adipocyte culture methods, novel surface markers for progenitor cells, innovative multi- and single-cell analysis methods, insights into the adipocyte secretome and cell/tissue communication, and models of insulin resistance. We welcome studies on different types of adipocytes, including white, brown, and beige adipocytes, and encourage the submission of papers exploring new genes, signaling pathways, and therapeutic targets. The goal is to consolidate research that advances adipocyte studies and informs future therapeutic strategies for obesity and metabolic diseases.

Dr. Aaron C. Brown
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Cells is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • adipose tissue
  • obesity
  • inflammation
  • thermogenesis
  • adipokines

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Review

27 pages, 1302 KB  
Review
The RTF-Compass: Navigating the Trade-Off Between Thermogenic Potential and Ferroptotic Stress in Adipocytes
by Minghao Fu, Manish Kumar Singh, Jyotsna Suresh Ranbhise, Kyung-Sik Yoon, Sung Soo Kim, Joohun Ha, Insug Kang, Suk Chon and Wonchae Choe
Cells 2026, 15(2), 170; https://doi.org/10.3390/cells15020170 - 16 Jan 2026
Viewed by 517
Abstract
Adipose tissue thermogenesis is a promising strategy to counter obesity and metabolic disease, but sustained activation of thermogenic adipocytes elevates oxidative and lipid-peroxidation stress, increasing susceptibility to ferroptotic cell death. Existing models often treat redox buffering, hypoxia signaling and ferroptosis as separate processes, [...] Read more.
Adipose tissue thermogenesis is a promising strategy to counter obesity and metabolic disease, but sustained activation of thermogenic adipocytes elevates oxidative and lipid-peroxidation stress, increasing susceptibility to ferroptotic cell death. Existing models often treat redox buffering, hypoxia signaling and ferroptosis as separate processes, which cannot explain why similar interventions—such as antioxidants, β-adrenergic agonists or iron modulators—alternately enhance thermogenesis or precipitate tissue failure. Here, we propose the Redox–Thermogenesis–Ferroptosis Compass (RTF-Compass) as a framework that maps adipose depots within a space defined by ferroptosis resistance capacity (FRC), ferroptosis signaling intensity (FSI) and HIF-1α-dependent hypoxic tone. Within this space, thermogenic output follows a hormetic, inverted-U trajectory, with a Thermogenic Ferroptosis Window (TFW) bounded by two failure states: a Reductive-Blunted state with excessive antioxidant buffering and weak signaling, and a Cytotoxic state with high ferroptotic pressure and inadequate defense. We use this model to reinterpret genetic, nutritional and pharmacological studies as state-dependent vectors that move depots through FRC–FSI–HIF space and to outline principles for precision redox medicine. Although the TFW is represented as coordinates in FRC–FSI–HIF space, we use ‘Compass’ to denote a coordinate framework in which perturbations act as vectors that orient depots toward thermogenic or cytotoxic outcomes. Finally, we highlight priorities for testing the model in vivo, including defining lipid species that encode ferroptotic tone, resolving spatial heterogeneity within depots and determining how metabolic memory constrains reversibility of pathological states. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Adipocyte Biology Research and Their Relevance to Metabolic Health)
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