Control of brown and beige fat development

Brown adipocytes (which reside in brown adipose tissue) and beige adipocytes (which develop in white adipose tissue in response to cold) expend energy to produce heat and are therefore important in regulating body temperature and body weight. Recent studies provide insights into the developmental origins of brown and beige adipocytes and into the regulation of their differentiation and function. Brown and beige adipocytes expend chemical energy to produce heat and are therefore important in regulating body temperature and body weight. Brown adipocytes develop in discrete and relatively homogenous depots of brown adipose tissue, whereas beige adipocytes are induced to develop in white adipose tissue in response to certain stimuli — notably, exposure to cold. Fate-mapping analyses have identified progenitor populations that give rise to brown and beige fat cells, and have revealed unanticipated cell-lineage relationships between vascular smooth muscle cells and beige adipocytes, and between skeletal muscle cells and brown fat. In addition, non-adipocyte cells in adipose tissue, including neurons, blood vessel-associated cells and immune cells, have crucial roles in regulating the differentiation and function of brown and beige fat.