scRNA-seq of stromal vascular cells from 48 week (aged) mouse subcutaneous adipose tissue compared to control 10 week (young) mouse SVF

Adipose tissue mass and adiposity change throughout the lifespan. During aging, while visceral adipose tissue (VAT) tends to increase, peripheral subcutaneous adipose tissue (SAT) decreases significantly. Unlike VAT, which is linked to metabolic diseases, SAT has beneficial effects. However, the molecular details behind aging-associated loss of SAT remain unclear. Here we compare scRNA-seq of total SVF of SAT from young and aging mice to identify a novel Aging-dependent Regulatory Cell (ARC) that emerges in SAT of aged mice. Inguinal white adipose tissue (iWAT) was used as a representative SAT; iWAT pads of 2 mice from each age group were subjected to collagenase digestion and treated with a hypotonic buffer to remove red blood cells before subjection to scRNA-seq by 10X Genomics Chromium Single Cell Kit. The findings showed that ARCs express adipogenic markers but lack adipogenic capacity and inhibit differentiation of neighboring adipose precursors.