Abstract
T cells and especially regulatory T cells play a pivotal role in adipose tissue homeostasis. Peripheral blood T cells are well studied; however, in-depth analysis of adipose tissue T cells in their environment is challenging, and the analysis of adipose tissue-resident T cells is currently restricted to in vivo mouse models and ex vivo human donor samples. We developed a model to study T cells in adipose tissue by means of an adipose tissue organoid model. We could observe a clear T cell infiltration in these organoids. Interestingly, we observed different infiltration ratios of regulatory T cells and CD4+ effector T cells. In addition to this, mimicking the inflammatory milieu in adipose tissue by the addition of lipopolysaccharide (LPS) enhanced CD4+ T cell infiltration within adipose tissue organoids. In summary, we herein provide a suitable ex vivo tool to analyze adipose tissue-resident T cells from different fat depots under near-physiological conditions.