Abstract
The rising incidence of adipose-related disorders such as obesity has prompted increased interest in the in vitro development of functional human soft tissues to study the disease and treatment options. Further, soft tissues maintained in vitro with a capacity to resemble in vivo tissues in structure and metabolic function would help gain insight into mechanisms involved in adipose tissue development. In the current study, the metabolic potential of adipose/endothelial cocultures on three-dimensional silk fibroin scaffolds was studied. Endothelial contributions to adipose lipogenesis and lipolysis were the focus of the study. Triglyceride accumulation, adipogenic gene transcript expression, and basal lipolysis measurements demonstrated the ability of this coculture system to retain metabolic levels obtained in adipocyte monocultures. Additionally, basal lipolysis was stimulated in mono- and coculture systems to a similar extent at 1.6- and 1.9-fold over controls, respectively. The ability to maintain adipose functions in these cocultures represents a step forward in the development of a tissue-engineered adipose tissue system exhibiting both endothelial lumens and metabolic functions.