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Clinical Studies and Practice

Diffuse optical spectroscopic imaging of subcutaneous adipose tissue metabolic changes during weight loss

Abstract

Background:

Changes in subcutaneous adipose tissue (AT) structure and metabolism have been shown to correlate with the development of obesity and related metabolic disorders. Measurements of AT physiology could provide new insight into metabolic disease progression and response to therapy. An emerging functional imaging technology, diffuse optical spectroscopic imaging (DOSI), was used to obtain quantitative measures of near infrared (NIR) AT optical and physiological properties.

Methods:

Ten overweight or obese adults were assessed during 3 months on calorie-restricted diets. DOSI-derived tissue concentrations of hemoglobin, water and lipid and the wavelength-dependent scattering amplitude (A) and slope (b) obtained from 30 abdominal locations and three time points (T0, T6, T12) were calculated and analyzed using linear mixed-effects models and were also used to form 3D surface images.

Results:

Subjects lost a mean of 11.7±3.4% of starting weight, while significant changes in A (+0.23±0.04 mm−1, adj. P<0.001),b (−0.17±0.04, adj. P<0.001), tissue water fraction (+7.2±1.1%, adj. P<0.001) and deoxyhemoglobin (1.1±0.3 μM, adj. P<0.001) were observed using mixed-effect model analysis.

Discussion:

Optical scattering signals reveal alterations in tissue structure that possibly correlate with reductions in adipose cell volume, while water and hemoglobin dynamics suggest improved AT perfusion and oxygen extraction. These results suggest that DOSI measurements of NIR optical and physiological properties could be used to enhance understanding of the role of AT in metabolic disorders and provide new strategies for diagnostic monitoring of obesity and weight loss.

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Acknowledgements

This research was supported by an NIH TL-1 training fellowship to GG (NIH 8UL1TR000153), an NIH CTSA grant (NIH UL1 TR000153) and NIH P41EB015890, the Laser Microbeam and Medical Program (LAMMP). Additional support was also provided by the Arnold and Mabel Beckman Foundation. We thank the administration of the UC Irvine weight management program for facilitating recruitment of research subjects. We also thank Amanda Durkin and Keunsik No for construction of DOSI instrumentation and Brian Hill for development of DOSI data processing methods.

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Correspondence to B J Tromberg.

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Competing interests

BJT is a co-inventor of the DOSI technology described in this paper, the patents for which are owned by the regents of the University of California. Some of these patents have been licensed to private companies, and none of the authors have any financial interest with these entities. This research was conceived and performed with no contribution or assistance from these entities.

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Ganesan, G., Warren, R., Leproux, A. et al. Diffuse optical spectroscopic imaging of subcutaneous adipose tissue metabolic changes during weight loss. Int J Obes 40, 1292–1300 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1038/ijo.2016.43

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