Fat Tissue Area Research Articles

Sonographic subcutaneous and visceral fat indices represent the distribution of body fat volume

A reliable method for direct measurement of both subcutaneous and visceral fat volume is the measurement of fat tissue area from tomographic pictures by CT or by MR imaging. However, these are not widely usable because of high cost and/or exposure to radiation. We compared sonographic subcutaneous and visceral fat indices with fat distribution by serial-slice MR imaging in 17 subjects. Sonographic subcutaneous or visceral fat index is standardized thickness of subcutaneous fat tissue or the intra-abdominal depth at the level of umbilicus by height. Sonographic visceral fat index and intra-abdominal depth were significantly correlated with visceral fat volume by serial-slice MR imaging (r = 0.746, r = 0.726, respectively). Similarly, sonographic subcutaneous fat index and subcutaneous fat thickness were significantly correlated with subcutaneous fat volume by serial-slice MR imaging (r = 0.825, r = 0.816, respectively). The ratio of sonographic visceral fat index and sonographic subcutaneous fat index was closely correlated with the ratio of the visceral fat volume and the subcutaneous fat volume by single-slice MR imaging, which proves to be related to cardiovascular disease risk (r = 0.722). Sonographic subcutaneous or visceral fat index could be an easily measured and inexpensive indicator for the assessment of fat distribution instead of CT or MR imaging.

The effects of UCP-1 polymorphisms on obesity phenotypes among Korean female subjects

Three SNPs of UCP-1 including A−3826G, A−1766G, and Ala64Thr (G+1068A) were genotyped among 453 overweight Korean female subjects recruited from an obesity clinic. Four common haplotypes with frequency greater than 0.04 were constructed with three SNPs. For an accurate evaluation of the effects of UCP-1 polymorphism on body fat accumulation, all subjects were tested using computerized tomography to measure the cross-sectional fat tissue areas at abdominal and distal part of the body. By statistical analyses, ht4[GAA] showed a significant association with decreased abdominal fat tissue area ( P = 0.02, dominant model), fat tissue area at thigh ( P = 0.008, dominant model), body fat mass ( P = 0.002, dominant model), and waist-to-hip ratio ( P = 0.01, dominant model). In addition, ht3[GAG] was associated with the accelerated reduction of waist-to-hip ratio and body fat mass by very low calorie diet among subjects who finished one-month-weight control program ( P = 0.05–0.006).

Relationships between changes in abdominal fat distribution and insulin sensitivity during a very low calorie diet in abdominally obese men and women

Little is known about the association between abdominal obesity and insulin sensitivity during rapid weight loss. We assessed the role of visceral and subcutaneous fat as determinants of insulin sensitivity during rapid weight loss in obese persons with the metabolic syndrome. Twenty abdominally obese individuals [11 women and 9 men, body mass index (BMI) 35.8+/-3.5 kg/m2] with the metabolic syndrome underwent a very-low-calorie diet (VLCD) for nine weeks. At baseline, the computed tomography (CT) measured area of total (r=-0.50, p=0.033) and visceral fat tissue (r=-0.48, p=0.043), but not that of subcutaneous fat tissue (r=-0.34, p=0.17), correlated with insulin sensitivity as assessed by the quantitative insulin sensitivity check index after adjusting for sex and age. The 18 subjects who completed the study lost 14.8 kg during the VLCD. Total, visceral and subcutaneous abdominal fat tissue decreased by 22%, 29% and 17%, respectively. The decrease in total (r=-0.51, p=0.035) and subcutaneous abdominal fat (r=-0.57, p=0.017), but not visceral fat (r=0.11, p=0.68), correlated with the increase in insulin sensitivity. Waist circumference did not offer any additional information concerning abdominal fat distribution or insulin sensitivity compared with that provided by BMI at baseline or after weight loss. The waist/hip ratio was not associated with the CT measures of abdominal fat distribution or insulin sensitivity. Total abdominal fat may be more important than its compartmentalisation in abdominally obese individuals with the metabolic syndrome. In this subgroup of individuals with obesity, the measurement of waist circumference and the waist/hip ratio offered little additional information over that provided by BMI at baseline or after weight loss.

Prediction Of Carcass Quality Traits Of Common Carp By X-Ray Computerized Tomography

X-ray computerized tomography (CT) and chemical analysis were used to determine the fat and protein contents in the fillet of table-sized mirror carps. Serial CT scans were taken along the body from the operculum to the beginning of the caudal fin. After scanning, the anesthetized fish were immediately processed; slaughter value and fillet yield were determined before taking sam- ples for chemical analysis. Independent variables of prediction equations were produced from the CT density values, which ranged from -90 to 160 on the Hounsfield scale. Based on the data derived from the CT scanning, areas (cm2) of muscle and fat tissue were identified. Fat deposi- tion was highest in the dorsal fin region. The muscle area varied according to the body shape and seems to be inadequate for predicting the slaughter value of common carp. The fat and pro- tein contents of the fillet, when predicted from scanning only the dorsal region, were as accurate as when predicted from scanning the whole body and were R2 = 0.88 and 0.86, respectively.

Threshold values of visceral fat measures and their anthropometric alternatives for metabolic derangement in Japanese obese boys

To determine whether the direct measure of visceral adipose tissue (VAT) by computed tomography (CT) is a superior diagnostic criterion to the anthropometric surrogates and more classical criteria of obesity. Cross-sectional, clinical study. Obese boys were classified according to the occurrence of abnormal values in either serum triglyceride, alanine aminotransferase or insulin level. A threshold value of each criterion for such metabolic derangement was calculated, using the analysis of receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve. Seventy-five consecutive outpatient Japanese obese boys, ranging in age from 6 to 14 y, were studied. Anthropometric indices measured were height, body weight, waist girth, hip girth, triceps and subscapular skinfold thicknesses. Classical criteria for obesity used were percentage overweight (POW), body mass index (BMI) and percentage body fat. Waist girth, sagittal diameter by CT and waist-hip ratio (WHR) were evaluated as anthropometric surrogates for VAT. The areas of total abdominal fat (TAF), VAT and subcutaneous adipose tissue (SAT) were measured by CT at the level of the umbilicus. Clinical blood biochemistry was analyzed in fasting blood samples of obese boys. Thirty-three boys were classified into a no-complication group, and 42 into a complication group. TAF, VAT and SAT areas were closely associated with age, body size and degree of overweight and adiposity, while VAT/SAT was not. VAT area, sagittal diameter, TAF area and waist girth were closely correlated with alanine aminotransferase, insulin, TG and HDL-C. VAT/SAT, BMI, SAT area, WHR, percentage body fat and POW were less closely associated with these biochemical indices. The descending order of the values of area under the curve for the ROC curves were as follows: VAT>sagittal diameter>TAF>VAT/SAT>waist girth>BMI>WHR>percentage body fat>POW. Both VAT area and VAT/SAT gave >80% of sensitivity and specificity. Among the anthropometric indices studied, the sagittal diameter was the best surrogate of visceral fat measure. The sensitivity and specificity for the rest of the anthropometric indices were in an unsatisfactory range. The threshold values for VAT area, VAT/SAT and sagittal diameter were 58.0 cm(2), 0.276 and 19.2 cm, respectively. The threshold values for VAT area, VAT/SAT and sagittal diameter for detecting biochemical complication in Japanese obese boys were lower than the respective values reported in adults. These values can be used for classifying the obese boys into two types: those with medical problem and those without.

Dietary restriction and walking reduce fat deposition in the midthigh in obese older women

It is suggested that fat deposition within midthigh muscle, represented by low-density lean tissue, increases with deconditioning and obesity and is associated with risk factors for cardiovascular disease (CVD) in women. We determined the effects of a 6-mo weight loss and walking (3 times/wk) program (WL+AEX) on midthigh low-density lean tissue and glucose and lipid metabolism in 24 sedentary, obese [body mass index (kg/m(2)): 32 +/- 1 (mean +/- SEM)] postmenopausal women aged 58 +/- 1 y. Total body fat and fat-free mass were measured by using dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry. Intraabdominal fat (IAF), subcutaneous abdominal fat (SAF), midthigh fat, midthigh muscle, and midthigh low-density lean tissue areas were measured by using computed tomography. Glucose and insulin responses were determined with a 3-h oral-glucose-tolerance test. Body weight decreased 8% (P: < 0.001) and maximal aerobic capacity increased 8% (P: < 0.001) with the weight loss and walking program. Total body fat decreased by 15% (P: < 0.001) whereas fat-free mass did not change. IAF and SAF decreased by 18% and 16%, respectively (P: < 0. 001). Midthigh fat and midthigh low-density lean tissue decreased by 16% and 18%, respectively (P: < 0.001), and midthigh muscle area increased by 7% (P: < 0.05). Fasting plasma insulin decreased by 12% and total glucose and insulin areas under the curve decreased by 6% and 24%, respectively (P: < 0.05). HDL-cholesterol concentrations increased 8% (P: < 0.05) and triacylglycerol concentrations decreased 19% (P: < 0.001). Increased physical fitness and weight loss reduce midthigh low-density lean tissue and improve glucose and lipid metabolic risk factors for CVD in obese postmenopausal women.

The effect of dietary protein level during the pre-pubertal period of growth on mammary gland development and subsequent milk production in Friesian heifers

Sixty-three Friesian heifers were assigned to three different diets (21 per group) of 11 MJ ME per kg DM containing low crude protein (CP, 142 g CP per kg DM) with high rumen protected protein (REP, 270 g REP per kg CP) (diet A), high-CP (183 g CP per kg DM) with low-REP (133 g REP per kg CP) (diet B) and high-CP (182 g CP per kg DM) with high-REP (267 g REP per kg CP) (diet C) to obtain liveweight gains (LWG) of greater than 900 g per day between five and ten months of age in order to study the influence of dietary CP and REP concentration on mammary gland development and subsequent milk production. Six heifers per group were slaughtered at 16 months of age for evaluation of mammary glands. Pre-pubertal LWG was influenced by dietary CP concentration, such that heifers consuming diets B and C gained more than those consuming diet A (918 vs. 952 vs. 990 g per d). Dietary REP concentration did not influence pre-pubertal LWG. At slaughter, heifers consuming pre-pubertal diets with high-CP concentrations had less mammary fat tissue area and a lower ratio of fat to secretory tissue compared with those on the low-CP diet (74.9 vs. 42.7 vs. 24.1 m 2; 1.6 vs. 0.69 vs. 0.61). Heifers that consumed diet B during the pre-pubertal period had heavier dry udder weights, and tended to have more mammary fat and more secretory tissue area in the dry udder at slaughter than those heifers that consumed diet C (820 vs. 519 g; 636 vs. 420 g; 64.2 vs. 39.9 m 2). Age and LW at calving were not influenced by either dietary CP or REP concentration. Daily first lactation milk, protein and fat yields were not influenced by pre-pubertal dietary CP concentration. The REP concentration in the pre-pubertal diets did not influence daily milk and fat yields but heifers that consumed diet C produced 0.08 kg more daily protein than did heifers that had consumed diet B.

Visceral adipose tissue and low-density lipoprotein particle size in middle-aged versus young men.

Age is associated with increased deposition of visceral adipose tissue. We examined whether this age-related change in regional adipose tissue distribution had an impact on low-density lipoprotein (LDL) particle size. For this purpose, the plasma lipoprotein-lipid profile, including LDL peak particle diameter as determined by gradient gel electrophoresis, was assessed in 38 young men (aged 26.4 +/- 4.2 years, mean +/- SD) and compared with 40 middle-aged men (55.9 +/- 6.2 years). Middle-aged men had higher values for total body fat and visceral adipose tissue area as measured by computed tomography than young men (P < .001). Although significant differences were noted between the two age groups for plasma cholesterol, triglyceride (TG), apolipoprotein B (apo B), LDL cholesterol, and LDL apo B, as well as the cholesterol to high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol ratio (P < .001), no difference was found for LDL peak particle size between young and middle-aged men. While visceral adipose tissue was a significant correlate of plasma lipoprotein levels, the fasting TG concentration was the best predictor of LDL particle size, and the regression of TG levels on LDL peak particle diameter was not different between the two age groups. These results suggest that middle-aged men are characterized by an increased concentration of LDL particles (reflected by increased LDL apo B levels) but not by a reduced LDL peak particle size compared with young men. It is therefore proposed that in the absence of an important age-related change in TG levels, age per se is associated with an increased concentration of atherogenic LDL particles rather than a reduction of LDL particle diameter.

Increased circulating leptin in alcoholic cirrhosis: relation to release and disposal.

Leptin is a cytokine peptide that decreases appetite and thereby food intake and increases energy expenditure. It is produced in fat cells, but recent animal experiments have shown expression of leptin in modified stellate hepatic cells. Because a change in circulating leptin in cirrhosis could be caused by an altered production rate, altered disposal rate, or both, the present study was undertaken to identify regions of leptin overflow into the blood stream and regions of leptin extraction. Patients with alcoholic cirrhosis (n = 16) and control patients without liver disease (n = 12) were studied during catheterization with elective blood sampling from different vascular beds. Blood samples for leptin determination (radioimmunoassay) were taken simultaneously from artery/hepatic vein, artery/renal vein, artery/iliac vein, and artery/cubital vein. Patients with cirrhosis had significantly increased circulating leptin (7.3 vs. control 2.6 ng/mL, P <.002) that correlated directly to ascitic-free body mass index (r = 0.71, P <.005). A significant renal extraction ratio of leptin was observed in control patients (0. 16) and in patients with cirrhosis (0.07), but the latter value was significantly lower than in the control patients (-44%, P <.05) and inversely correlated to serum creatinine (r = -0.60, P <.05). A significant, but equal, hepatosplanchnic extraction of leptin was observed in cirrhotic patients and control patients (0.08 vs. 0.07). In patients with cirrhosis a significant cubital venous-arterial difference in leptin was observed, but not in control patients. The iliac venous/arterial leptin ratio was significantly above 1.0 in both groups and of similar size (1.16 vs. 1.15), but a higher difference in concentration was found in the cirrhotic patients (+33%, P <.05). The spillover rates of leptin in cirrhotic patients may be even higher than estimated from the increased systemic veno-arterial gradients. In conclusion, the elevated circulating leptin in patients with cirrhosis is most likely caused by a combination of decreased renal extraction and increased release from subcutaneous abdominal, femoral, gluteal, retroperitoneal pelvic, and upper limb fat tissue areas. The hepatosplanchnic bed drained through hepatic veins could not be identified as a source of increased circulating leptin in cirrhosis, but a contribution by the portosystemic collateral flow cannot be excluded.

Pathology and treatment of anemia in the elderly

An important background characteristic of anemia in the elderly is decrease in hematopoiesis due to aging. Factors influencing hematopoiesis in the elderly include changes in the distribution of hematopoietic tissue, changes in hematopoietic stem cell density and changes in the hematopoietic inductive microenvironment. In the present study, in order to assess changes in the bone marrow with aging, the fat tissue area, uncleated cell-count and cellularity in the bone marrow, in addition to changes in the diameter of the vascular lumen which result primarily from sclerotic changes in the dorsomedial artery of the bone marrow were determined in different age groups. The results revealed that all of the aforementioned factors changed significantly with aging. We also describe on the results of assays of inflammatory cytokines (IL-1, IL-6, TNF-alpha), lactoferrin and transferrin receptors in cases of anemia of chronic disorders (ACD) which own secondary to chronic inflammatory diseases and is known to frequently afflict the elderly.

Divergent effects of short-term, very-low-calorie diet on insulin-like growth factor-I and insulin-like growth factor binding protein-3 serum concentrations in premenopausal women with obesity.

Insulin-like growth factor-I (IGF-I) and insulin-like growth factor binding protein-3 (IGFBP-3) serum concentrations provide a good measure of the biological effects of growth hormone. The aims of the present study were to: (1) investigate the associations of IGF-I and IGFBP-3 with body fat mass and distribution, and (2) evaluate the effects of 3 weeks of very-low-calorie diet (VLCD) (318 kcal/day, with 40 g protein, 35 g carbohydrate, and 2 g fat) on IGF-I and IGFBP-3 serum concentrations. The study was performed in 21 nondiabetic premenopausal women with obesity (body mass index >27.0 kg/m2; age: ranging from 18 to 48 years). Body fat mass and distribution were measured by computed tomography. Before dietary treatment, IGF-I and IGFBP-3 serum concentrations were inversely associated with visceral adipose tissue (VAT) area (p<0.005 and p<0.05, respectively), but not with either total body fat or subcutaneous adipose tissue area. VLCD produced a significant decrease of body mass index (p<0.001), total body fat (p<0.001), VAT (p<0.005), subcutaneous adipose tissue (p<0.001), IGF-I concentrations (p<0.05), and an increase of IGFBP-3 serum levels (p<0.001). The association of VAT with either IGF-I or IGFBP-3 serum concentrations was not maintained following VLCD. Our study suggests that visceral adipose tissue, rather than adiposity per se, accounts for IGF-I and IGFBP-3 serum concentrations, and that rapid weight loss, possibly due to nutritional changes, results in lower IGF-I concentrations, higher IGFBP-3 concentrations, and abrogation of the inverse associations of VAT with IGF-I and IGFBP-3.

A longitudinal study of lean and fat areas at the arm.

Using biceps and triceps skinfolds and upper arm circumference, areas of fat and lean tissue at the arm can be approximately determined based on a cylindrical assumption. Based on the first Zürich growth study a longitudinal analysis of estimated fat and lean areas is undertaken. Area may often be a more meaningful parameter than width in development, due to the increasing width of the limbs stretching the layer of fat. When comparing these quantities with the body mass index, correlations in boys were higher for lean area than for fat area, and about equally high for both measures in girls (around 0.8 beyond age 10). The primary goal of this investigation was to quantify the development of lean and fat arm areas from birth to adulthood, and to assess sex differences in this respect. The comparison with results obtained earlier from radiographic data is of particular interest, since such data can rarely be obtained any more, and overall this comparison can be considered encouraging. Lean area develops slowly until the onset of puberty, girls showing a slightly smaller value than boys. The pubertal spurt is very impressive in boys and moderate in girls, timed to age of peak height velocity in both sexes. Fat area changes only minimally in boys older than 16 months, and increases steadily in girls until age 16. The respective velocity curve shows a systematic up and down until age 5, when a gradual increase to a prepubertal fat spurt starts. It is interrupted by a trough in velocity--much more accentuated in boys--at puberty, and followed by a postpubertal fat spurt. When studying subgroups of subjects with a relatively high or relatively low adult body mass index, the heavy group differed relatively more in terms of fat area than lean area. Girls heavy as adults increase their fat area consistently more from about 5 years onwards. Boys later heavy show a qualitatively different pattern in puberty, with accentuated pre- and postpubertal fat spurts, but also a strong trough to a negative velocity in between.

ヒト鼓膜張筋の脂肪組織に関する形態計測

Human temporal bones from 131 ears of 92 subjects were sectioned horizontally to measure the area of the tensor tympani muscles and related fat tissues.Under one year of age, the amount of fat tissue of the tensor tympani muscle was slight in ears. After one year of age, however, the ratio of the area of fat tissue to the area of tensor tympani muscle continued to increase with age.Ears of patients under 10 years of age were examined in detail. There was even a very scant amount of fat tissue in a fetus at 36 weeks gestation and after 2 years of age the quantity of fat tissue increased rapidly. The major areas where fat tissue initially appeared were between the tensor tympani muscle and the bony semicanal.The quantity of fat tissue of the tensor tympani muscle was not related to the obesity of the particular individual.From these findings, the fat tissue of the tensor tympani muscle was considered to be fatty degeneration with advancing age, as well as the development of yielding tissue in young persons to facilitate contraction of the muscle within the bony semicanal.

Factors in adipogenesis

The size of the fat depot provides a morphologic index of its metabolic activity. It may be tentatively generalized that the perirenal, epicardial, orbital, plantar, and cheek adipose tissues are metabolically less active than subcutaneous, mesenteric, omental, and eventually other internal depots. The relative number of adipocytes and of potential fat cell precursors is not the factor primarily responsible for differences in function or degree of function of the individual depots. In both accumulation and release of particulate material a major role is presumably played by the changeable profile of the ectoplasmic membrane of the fat cell. The rate of blood flow and volume of vascular bed are equally important, but probably the most important factor rests in the adrenergic activity of the tissue, that is to say the extent of sympathetic innervation. The concept of an adipose tissue as a compound organ with relative autonomy in function of the different depots receives indirect support by the not uncommon selective response to injury of localized areas of fat tissue to presumably systemic injury. Differences in the rate of cellular differentiation of the different depots during embryonal development indirectly suggest that the characteristic traits of the individual depots are determined early in intrauterine life.

Massive subcutaneous fat necrosis after extravasation of intravenous infusion of fat emulsion

The recognized usefulness of intravenously administered fat emulsion is not negated by the possibility that extravasation may lead to subcutaneous fat necrosis. With proper administration of the emulsion extravasation will not occur. Subcutaneous extravasation of intravenously administered fat emulsion is not an innocuous occurrence, and may lead to extensive subcutaneous infection and fat necrosis. Our experience suggests that such extravasations may be easily mistaken for local thrombophlebitis or cellulitis. Incisions into the involved area and debridement of necrotic fat tissue should be carried out as soon as the lesion is recognized.