Lipidomic analysis of microfat and nanofat reveal different lipid mediator compositions.

Abstract

Microfat and nanofat are two commonly used techniques in various surgical procedures from skin rejuvenation to scar correction that are known to contribute to tissue regeneration. While microfat mainly contains adipocytes and is well suited for tissue augmentation, nanofat is rich in lipids, adipose derived stem cells, microvascular fragments, and growth factors, making it attractive for esthetic use. We have previously demonstrated that the mechanical processing of microfat into nanofat significantly changes its proteomic profile. Considering that mechanical fractionation leads to adipocyte disruption and lipid release, we aimed to analyze the lipidomic profile for its regenerative properties. Microfat and nanofat samples were isolated from fourteen healthy patients. Lipidomic profiling was performed by liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry. Resulting data was compared against the Human Metabolome and LIPID MAPS® Structure Database. Metaboanalyst was used to analyze metabolic pathways and lipids of interest. From 2,388 mass-to-charge ratio features, metabolic pathway enrichment analysis between microfat and nanofat samples revealed 109 pathways that were significantly enriched. While microfat samples revealed higher intensity levels of sphingosines, different eicosanoids and fat-soluble vitamins, increased levels of coumaric acids and prostacyclin were found in nanofat. This is the first study that has analyzed the lipidomic profile of micro- and nanofat, providing evidence that mechanical emulsification of microfat into nanofat leads to changes in their lipid profile. From 109 biological pathways, anti-inflammatory, anti-fibrotic and anti-melanogenic lipid mediators were particularly enriched in nanofat samples when compared to microfat. Although further studies are necessary to have a deeper understanding on the composition of these specific lipid mediators in nanofat samples, we propose that they might contribute to its regenerative effects on tissue.