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Adipose tissue (AT) expansion is accompanied by the infiltration and accumulation of AT macrophages (ATMs), as well as a shift in ATM polarization. Several studies have implicated recruited M1 ATMs in the metabolic consequences of obesity; however, little is known regarding the role of alternatively activated resident M2 ATMs in AT homeostasis or how their function is altered in obesity. Herein, we report the discovery of a population of alternatively activated ATMs with elevated cellular iron content and an iron-recycling gene expression profile. These iron-rich ATMs are referred to as MFe(hi), and the remaining ATMs are referred to as MFe(lo). In lean mice, ~25% of the ATMs are MFe(hi); this percentage decreases in obesity owing to the recruitment of MFe(lo) macrophages. Similar to MFe(lo) cells, MFe(hi) ATMs undergo an inflammatory shift in obesity. In vivo, obesity reduces the iron content of MFe(hi) ATMs and the gene expression of iron importers as well as the iron exporter, ferroportin, suggesting an impaired ability to handle iron. In vitro, exposure of primary peritoneal macrophages to saturated fatty acids also alters iron metabolism gene expression. Finally, the impaired MFe(hi) iron handling coincides with adipocyte iron overload in obese mice. In conclusion, in obesity, iron distribution is altered both at the cellular and tissue levels, with AT playing a predominant role in this change. An increased availability of fatty acids during obesity may contribute to the observed changes in MFe(hi) ATM phenotype and their reduced capacity to handle iron.

Objective: Mice with CCR2 deficiency are protected from insulin resistance but only after long periods of high-fat diet (HFD) feeding, despite the virtual absence of circulating inflammatory monocytes. We performed a time course study in mice with hematopoietic and global CCR2 deficiency to determine adipose tissue-specific mechanisms for the delayed impact of CCR2 deficiency on insulin resistance., Research Design and Methods: Mice with global or hematopoietic CCR2 deficiency (CCR2(-/-) and BM-CCR2(-/-), respectively) and wild-type controls (CCR2(+/+) and BM-CCR2(+/+), respectively) were placed on an HFD for 6, 12, and 20 weeks. Adipose tissue myeloid populations, degree of inflammation, glucose tolerance, and insulin sensitivity were assessed., Results: Flow cytometry analysis showed that two different populations of F4/80(+) myeloid cells (CD11b(lo)F4/80(lo) and CD11b(hi)F4/80(hi)) accumulated in the adipose tissue of CCR2(-/-) and BM-CCR2(-/-) mice after 6 and 12 weeks of HFD feeding, whereas only the CD11b(hi)F4/80(hi) population was detected in the CCR2(+/+) and BM-CCR2(+/+) controls. After 20 weeks of HFD feeding, the CD11b(lo)F4/80(lo) cells were no longer present in the adipose tissue of CCR2(-/-) mice, and only then were improvements in adipose tissue inflammation detected. Gene expression and histological analysis of the CD11b(lo)F4/80(lo) cells indicated that they are a unique undifferentiated monocytic inflammatory population. The CD11b(lo)F4/80(lo) cells are transiently found in wild-type mice, but CCR2 deficiency leads to the aberrant accumulation of these cells in adipose tissue., Conclusions: The discovery of this novel adipose tissue monocytic cell population provides advances toward understanding the pleiotropic role of CCR2 in monocyte/macrophage accumulation and regulation of adipose tissue inflammation.

Macrophages and T-lymphocytes are known to accumulate in the white adipose tissue (WAT) of obese mice and humans, but the factors that cause this infiltration are not yet determined. Chemokines, which attract leukocytes to inflammatory sites, are candidates for this process. Macrophage inflammatory protein-1alpha (MIP-1alpha) expression is significantly elevated in WAT of obese mice and humans and positively correlates with fasting plasma insulin, but its potential role in leukocyte recruitment to WAT is unknown. MIP-1alpha-deficient, heterozygous, and wild-type mice were fed a Western diet (WD) for 16 wk. Plasma lipids, adipose tissue mass, energy expenditure, food intake, liver triglyceride content, and inflammatory cytokine expression were not different among genotypes. Gene expression of macrophage markers F4/80 and CD68, as well as T-lymphocyte marker CD3epsilon was increased in perigonadal WAT of obese WD-fed mice but was not influenced by MIP-1alpha expression level. Immunohistochemical analysis of WAT also showed no effect of MIP-1alpha on macrophage content. Two related chemokines, MIP-1beta and RANTES, had reduced expression in obese male MIP-1alpha-deficient mice compared with wild-type controls (P < or = 0.05). In mice fed the WD for 6 wk, WAT macrophage content was unchanged; however, CD8+ T-lymphocytes accumulated to a lesser extent in the MIP-1alpha-null mice. Therefore, expression of MIP-1alpha, as well as that of MIP-1beta and RANTES, increases as a consequence of weight gain, but these chemokines may not be required for the recruitment of monocytes to WAT during diet-induced obesity in mice and may impact T-lymphocyte recruitment only at early time points after WD feeding.