Immune profiles of T lymphocyte subsets in adipose tissue of obese mouse induced by high-fat diet

Abstract

In this study, we analyzed high-fat diet (HFD)-induced time-course changes in proportions of T lymphocyte subsets in adipose tissue.Mice were fed with normal-fat diet (NFD) or HFD for 20 weeks. An autoanalyzer was used to assay plasma concentrations of glucose, cholesterol, triglycerides, low-density lipoprotein (LDL), and high-density lipoprotein (HDL). Stromal vascular cells were isolated from epididymal adipose tissues and labeled with antibodies for cluster of differentiation (CD) 3, CD4, CD8, interferon -g, interleukin (IL)-4, and IL-17 for fluorescence-activated cell sorter. We discovered that weight of epididymal fat pads and perirenal fat in HFD group were higher than that in NFD group. Significant changes in glucose, cholesterol, triglyceride, LDL, and HDL content were detected in sera of mice fed with HFD compared with those provided with NFD. Proportions of CD3+, CD4+, and CD8+ T cells increased significantly in adipose tissues of HFD mice compared with those of NFD mice. Proportions of T helper (Th)1 and Th17 sublineages also increased significantly in HFD group. Long-time HFD-induced obesity can increase proportions of CD3+ T, CD4+ T, and CD8+ T cells in epididymal fat pads, disrupt balance of CD4+ T lymphocyte subsets, and induce progressive Th1 and Th17 biases.