Proteomics Research in the Adipose Tissue

Adipose tissue is no longer considered only as a passive fuel reservoir, but a major endocrine organ, distributed in different depots throughout the body and actively involved in complex regulatory processes including appetite, energy expenditure, body weight, inflammation and reproduction. Proteomics has emerged as a valuable technique to characterize both cellular and secreted proteomes from adipose tissues. Adipose tissue is of major importance in farm animals: in dairy animals, it regulates energy metabolism as well as other functions. In cows and pigs, adipose tissue depots’ distribution is of fundamental importance for the quality of carcasses. In this chapter, we provide a general overview of adipose tissue functions and its importance in farm animals and summarize the state of art on farm animal adipose tissue proteomics in cattle and pigs but also in chicken and in farmed fish.