Phenotypic diversity of human adipose tissue-resident NK cells in obesity

NK cells in adipose tissue have been shown to play an important role in the development of obesity-related insulin resistance, but little is still known about the identity of NK cells in human adipose tissue. In this study, Martha Haugstøyl and colleagues performed an in-depth characterization of NK cells in blood and adipose tissue from people with obesity. Using advanced flow cytometry, they identified subsets of NK cells that specifically resided in the adipose tissue and had higher expression of the activation markers, CD26, CCR5 and CD63. These findings provide increased knowledge about which NK cells are found in the adipose tissue in humans and which may play a role in the development of obesity-related metabolic disease.