Two major types of adipose tissue exist in our body: White adipose tissue (WAT), which stores energy and brown adipose tissue (BAT), which dissipates energy. During obesity, the WAT expands, which is accompanied by an inflammatory response mainly driven by myeloid cells. The contributing signals and signaling pathways regulating metaflammation remain elusive.

Cyclic GMP (cGMP) is an important secondary messenger contributing to tissue homeostasis that regulates important functions including vascular tone and blood pressure, sensory processes, neuronal plasticity and inflammation. We and others have shown that cGMP signaling also plays an important role in adipose tissue. Notably, we found that cGMP signaling is reduced in obese WAT. However, the role of cGMP in myeloid cell migration, polarization and function still not fully understood. The goal of this project is to unravel the role of cGMP and its related immunomodulatory signaling networks to better understand the regulation of adipose tissue inflammation during obesity.