Effects of ad libitum feeding on canine subcutaneous adipose tissue gene expression

Adipose, once considered an inert storage depot, is now known to be an active endocrine tissue involved in total body homeostasis and metabolism, which exerts effects on multiple systems including food intake, immune function, and blood glucose regulation. During the development of obesity, adipose undergoes major expansion and remodeling, but the biological processes involved in this transition are not well understood. Thus, we used canine microarrays to analyze gene expression profiles of subcutaneous adipose tissue during the transition from a lean to obese phenotype. Subcutaneous adipose tissue samples were collected from 9 intact female beagles (4 yr-old; 4 control; 5 ad libitum) at baseline, 4, 8, 12 and 24 wk after beginning ad libitum feeding.