A functional 3D biomimetic in vitro approach to assess brown fat thermogenesis

The project will examine the hypothesis that the use of 3D culture methods, particularly alginate collagen hydrogel fibres, can provide a reliable and more accurate model for adipocyte differentiation towards BAT and/or WAT than the standard 2D culture model. The 3D culture may produce more mature adipocytes through increased differentiation and/or retention of the mature cells. Once a stable, reliable and accurate 3D model has been developed, it could be used to answer a multitude of questions relevant to obesity, diabetes and the minute details of the pathways regulating adipocyte formation, lipolysis or lipogenesis.