Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine · 6 authors, 2 centres
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This study compared microvascular fragment (MVF) isolates from the subcutaneous fat of obese and lean mice. The central result was that MVF from obese mice were free of connective tissue contamination and led to significantly improved vascularization when seeded on scaffolds implanted into mouse skin defects.
Researchers generated MVF isolates from the subcutaneous adipose tissue of mice fed a high-fat diet (obese) or a control diet (lean) for 12 weeks. In vitro analyses showed that adipose tissue from obese mice had a lower collagen fraction and microvessel density, resulting in fewer MVF per mL of tissue. However, the MVF were longer and, crucially, not contaminated with collagen fibers. This allowed them to be freely seeded onto collagen-glycosaminoglycan scaffolds, unlike MVF from lean mice which clogged the scaffold pores with collagen. In vivo, scaffolds seeded with MVF from obese mice showed significantly improved vascularization and a higher microvessel density after implantation into full-thickness skin defects of recipient mice, as assessed by intravital microscopy and histology. The study concludes that subcutaneous fat from obese mice facilitates the generation of connective tissue-free MVF isolates, suggesting a potential clinical benefit for obese patients in vascularization strategies.
