The Role of Adipose Tissue-Resident γδ T Cells in Age-Associated Inflammation and Metabolic Dysfunction
Adipose tissue dysfunction is linked to metabolic derangements and chronic low-grade systemic inflammation, which are characteristic of the aging process and underlie numerous age-related diseases. This proposal is centered on Dr. Starr’s novel findings that visceral adipose tissue (VAT) of aged mice contains nearly 10-fold more gamma delta (γδ) T cells than young-adult mice. The central hypothesis is that accumulation of γδ T cells in VAT promotes age-associated adipose tissue dysfunction. The manner with which these cells come to accumulate in VAT with age and the mechanisms for their action, specifically in VAT, are not known. In this project, Dr. Starr will investigate how T cells change with aging, including analysis of senescence and metabolic dysfunction. As aging poses the greatest risk for the development of chronic disease, the generated data will aid in the identification of strategies to reduce the burden of a long list of age-related disorders, for which chronic inflammation is a common denominator.
