Clemente-Postigo, MercedesTinahones, AlbertoEl Bekay, RajaaMalagón, María M.Tinahones, Francisco J.2022-04-072022-04-072020-04-30Clemente-Postigo M, Tinahones A, El Bekay R, Malagón MM, Tinahones FJ. The Role of Autophagy in White Adipose Tissue Function: Implications for Metabolic Health. Metabolites. 2020 Apr 30;10(5):179http://hdl.handle.net/10668/3533White adipose tissue (WAT) is a highly adaptive endocrine organ that continuously remodels in response to nutritional cues. WAT expands to store excess energy by increasing adipocyte number and/or size. Failure in WAT expansion has serious consequences on metabolic health resulting in altered lipid, glucose, and inflammatory profiles. Besides an impaired adipogenesis, fibrosis and low-grade inflammation also characterize dysfunctional WAT. Nevertheless, the precise mechanisms leading to impaired WAT expansibility are yet unresolved. Autophagy is a conserved and essential process for cellular homeostasis, which constitutively allows the recycling of damaged or long-lived proteins and organelles, but is also highly induced under stress conditions to provide nutrients and remove pathogens. By modulating protein and organelle content, autophagy is also essential for cell remodeling, maintenance, and survival. In this line, autophagy has been involved in many processes affected during WAT maladaptation, including adipogenesis, adipocyte, and macrophage function, inflammatory response, and fibrosis. WAT autophagy dysregulation is related to obesity and diabetes. However, it remains unclear whether WAT autophagy alteration in obese and diabetic patients are the cause or the consequence of WAT malfunction. In this review, current data regarding these issues are discussed, focusing on evidence from human studies.enAtribución 4.0 Internacionalhttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/Adipose tissueAdipocyteAutophagyObesityDiabetesMetabolismTejido adiposoAdipocitosAutofagiaObesidadDiabetes MellitusMetabolismoMedical Subject Headings::Anatomy::Endocrine SystemMedical Subject Headings::Anatomy::Tissues::Connective Tissue::Adipose TissueMedical Subject Headings::Anatomy::Cells::Connective Tissue Cells::AdipocytesMedical Subject Headings::Phenomena and Processes::Cell Physiological Phenomena::Cell Physiological Processes::Cell Death::AutophagyMedical Subject Headings::Diseases::Nutritional and Metabolic Diseases::Nutrition Disorders::Overnutrition::ObesityMedical Subject Headings::Diseases::Endocrine System Diseases::Diabetes MellitusMedical Subject Headings::Phenomena and Processes::Metabolic Phenomena::MetabolismMedical Subject Headings::Phenomena and Processes::Cell Physiological Phenomena::Cell Physiological Processes::Cell Differentiation::AdipogenesisMedical Subject Headings::Organisms::Eukaryota::Animals::Chordata::Vertebrates::Mammals::Primates::Haplorhini::Catarrhini::Hominidae::HumansMedical Subject Headings::Phenomena and Processes::Physiological Phenomena::Physiological Processes::HomeostasisMedical Subject Headings::Diseases::Pathological Conditions, Signs and Symptoms::Pathologic Processes::FibrosisMedical Subject Headings::Diseases::Pathological Conditions, Signs and Symptoms::Pathologic Processes::InflammationMedical Subject Headings::Chemicals and Drugs::LipidsMedical Subject Headings::Chemicals and Drugs::Carbohydrates::Monosaccharides::Hexoses::Glucosereview article32365782open access10.3390/metabo100501792218-1989PMC7281383