Grant: Master's Award: Canada Graduate Scholarships

The development of obesity is linked to changes in the adipose (fat) tissue. Adipose tissue influences organs through the release of hormones and inflammatory proteins. The function of adipose tissue is critically reliant on its level of vascularization. In obesity, there is a rapid expansion of adipose tissue. This requires a concomitant expansion in the adipose vascular network to keep fat cells healthy. Otherwise, inadequate supply of oxygen and nutrients leads to fat tissue dysfunction and increases the risk of obesity-related metabolic disorders. Blood vessel growth depends on a balance between proteins that induce or inhibit capillary growth. On factor that is known to inhibit capillary growth is Forkhead Box O1.Research has shown a sex-associated difference in the development of obesity. On a high-fat diet, male mice more often incur severe weight gain and insulin resistance compared to females. The presence of estrogen, and its positive effects on capillary growth, may possibly explain this protective phenotype in females. Thus, I postulate, with a high-fat diet, males have an enhanced expression of Forkhead Box O1, which blocks capillary growth in adipose tissue, making them more prone to develop metabolic disorders. However, estrogen protects females against the negative influence of this protein which makes them more resistant to the development of obesity-related metabolic disorders.This proposal focuses on differences in male and female adipose tissue vascular profile as an underlying cause of differences in disease susceptibility. Moreover, it examines whether sex hormones, specifically estrogen, can alter adipose tissue capillary growth as this will better help understand women's health in the context of obesity.