The crosstalk of macrophages and the adipose tissue
The crosstalk of macrophages and the adipose tissue
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Date of Embargo
15.04.2027Type of Scholarly Publication
DissertationDate of Exam
25.03.2026Date of Publication
07.04.2026Advisor
Wachten, DagmarCo-Referee
Mass, ElviraMetadata
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Abstract
The primary cilium is a highly conserved sensory organelle found on most mammalian cells, which senses environmental signals and transduces this information into a cellular response. Within the adipocyte linage, only the adipocyte precursor cells (APCs) display a primary cilium, which is lost during differentiation. Which extracellular signals are sensed by primary ciliary signaling in APCs and how this controls preadipocyte function and differentiation is not well understood.
Tissue-resident macrophages that are formed during early embryonic development have important homeostatic functions in different tissues. In the adipose tissue (AT), adipose tissue-resident macrophages (ATMs) can be distinguished from CD11c+, monocyte-derived macrophages by expressing TIM4. Loss of TIM4+ ATMs prevents lipid accumulation in mature adipocytes, leading to restricted WAT development. This is controlled by the growth factor Pdgfcc, which is secreted by ATMs and acts on adipocytes in a paracrine manner. Strikingly, loss of the primary cilium in vivo also restricts WAT development. The receptor for Pdgfcc, Pdgfr-a, is located in the primary cilium, but whether macrophages communicate with adipocyte progenitor cells via the primary cilium remains unknown.
I aim to unravel the cilia-dependent communication between APCs and ATMs in the white adipose tissue. In particular, I will investigate whether paracrine signaling from macrophages acts on adipocyte precursors through signaling via the primary cilium, thereby controlling adipocyte differentiation and function. To this end, I have established an in vitro WAT spheroid model, which will be combined with different mouse models that display defects in primary signaling. Using this combination of 3D in vitro and in vivo approaches together with fluorescence imaging as well as biochemical and metabolic approaches, I will decipher the role of primary cilia in adipocytes – macrophage communication.
Tissue-resident macrophages that are formed during early embryonic development have important homeostatic functions in different tissues. In the adipose tissue (AT), adipose tissue-resident macrophages (ATMs) can be distinguished from CD11c+, monocyte-derived macrophages by expressing TIM4. Loss of TIM4+ ATMs prevents lipid accumulation in mature adipocytes, leading to restricted WAT development. This is controlled by the growth factor Pdgfcc, which is secreted by ATMs and acts on adipocytes in a paracrine manner. Strikingly, loss of the primary cilium in vivo also restricts WAT development. The receptor for Pdgfcc, Pdgfr-a, is located in the primary cilium, but whether macrophages communicate with adipocyte progenitor cells via the primary cilium remains unknown.
I aim to unravel the cilia-dependent communication between APCs and ATMs in the white adipose tissue. In particular, I will investigate whether paracrine signaling from macrophages acts on adipocyte precursors through signaling via the primary cilium, thereby controlling adipocyte differentiation and function. To this end, I have established an in vitro WAT spheroid model, which will be combined with different mouse models that display defects in primary signaling. Using this combination of 3D in vitro and in vivo approaches together with fluorescence imaging as well as biochemical and metabolic approaches, I will decipher the role of primary cilia in adipocytes – macrophage communication.
Subjects
Zilium, PDGFRa, Fett, Fettgewebe, Makrophagen, Primäres Zilium, Präadipozyten, IFT, Signalweg, BBS, Primary cilium, Macrophage, Adipose tissue, Crosstalk
Classification (DDC)
610 Medizin, GesundheitYüksel, Seniz: The crosstalk of macrophages and the adipose tissue. - Bonn, 2026. - Dissertation, Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität Bonn.
Online-Ausgabe in bonndoc: https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:hbz:5-89515
Online-Ausgabe in bonndoc: https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:hbz:5-89515
@phdthesis{handle:20.500.11811/14078,
urn: https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:hbz:5-89515,
author = {{Seniz Yüksel}},
title = {The crosstalk of macrophages and the adipose tissue},
school = {Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität Bonn},
year = 2026,
month = apr,
note = {The primary cilium is a highly conserved sensory organelle found on most mammalian cells, which senses environmental signals and transduces this information into a cellular response. Within the adipocyte linage, only the adipocyte precursor cells (APCs) display a primary cilium, which is lost during differentiation. Which extracellular signals are sensed by primary ciliary signaling in APCs and how this controls preadipocyte function and differentiation is not well understood.
Tissue-resident macrophages that are formed during early embryonic development have important homeostatic functions in different tissues. In the adipose tissue (AT), adipose tissue-resident macrophages (ATMs) can be distinguished from CD11c+, monocyte-derived macrophages by expressing TIM4. Loss of TIM4+ ATMs prevents lipid accumulation in mature adipocytes, leading to restricted WAT development. This is controlled by the growth factor Pdgfcc, which is secreted by ATMs and acts on adipocytes in a paracrine manner. Strikingly, loss of the primary cilium in vivo also restricts WAT development. The receptor for Pdgfcc, Pdgfr-a, is located in the primary cilium, but whether macrophages communicate with adipocyte progenitor cells via the primary cilium remains unknown.
I aim to unravel the cilia-dependent communication between APCs and ATMs in the white adipose tissue. In particular, I will investigate whether paracrine signaling from macrophages acts on adipocyte precursors through signaling via the primary cilium, thereby controlling adipocyte differentiation and function. To this end, I have established an in vitro WAT spheroid model, which will be combined with different mouse models that display defects in primary signaling. Using this combination of 3D in vitro and in vivo approaches together with fluorescence imaging as well as biochemical and metabolic approaches, I will decipher the role of primary cilia in adipocytes – macrophage communication.},
url = {https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11811/14078}
}
urn: https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:hbz:5-89515,
author = {{Seniz Yüksel}},
title = {The crosstalk of macrophages and the adipose tissue},
school = {Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität Bonn},
year = 2026,
month = apr,
note = {The primary cilium is a highly conserved sensory organelle found on most mammalian cells, which senses environmental signals and transduces this information into a cellular response. Within the adipocyte linage, only the adipocyte precursor cells (APCs) display a primary cilium, which is lost during differentiation. Which extracellular signals are sensed by primary ciliary signaling in APCs and how this controls preadipocyte function and differentiation is not well understood.
Tissue-resident macrophages that are formed during early embryonic development have important homeostatic functions in different tissues. In the adipose tissue (AT), adipose tissue-resident macrophages (ATMs) can be distinguished from CD11c+, monocyte-derived macrophages by expressing TIM4. Loss of TIM4+ ATMs prevents lipid accumulation in mature adipocytes, leading to restricted WAT development. This is controlled by the growth factor Pdgfcc, which is secreted by ATMs and acts on adipocytes in a paracrine manner. Strikingly, loss of the primary cilium in vivo also restricts WAT development. The receptor for Pdgfcc, Pdgfr-a, is located in the primary cilium, but whether macrophages communicate with adipocyte progenitor cells via the primary cilium remains unknown.
I aim to unravel the cilia-dependent communication between APCs and ATMs in the white adipose tissue. In particular, I will investigate whether paracrine signaling from macrophages acts on adipocyte precursors through signaling via the primary cilium, thereby controlling adipocyte differentiation and function. To this end, I have established an in vitro WAT spheroid model, which will be combined with different mouse models that display defects in primary signaling. Using this combination of 3D in vitro and in vivo approaches together with fluorescence imaging as well as biochemical and metabolic approaches, I will decipher the role of primary cilia in adipocytes – macrophage communication.},
url = {https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11811/14078}
}
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