Research
Hormonal
Hypertrophic (large) adipocytes promote skin aging by secreting proinflammatory cytokines, downregulating collagen/elastin, and upregulating MMPs, whereas small healthy adipocytes promote skin health via adiponectin.
Maintain a healthy weight to avoid hypertrophic (large) fat cells, which promote skin aging through inflammation and collagen breakdown. Focus on strategies that promote small, healthy fat cells, which support skin structure via adiponectin.
ModerateSupportsMEDIUM confidence
When in culture, these adipocytes [hypertrophic] secrete low levels of adiponectin, downregulate collagen and elastin genes, and upregulate MMP13 and MMP9 in surrounding fibroblasts, decreasing collagen and elastin formation and creating a dysfunctional ECM. It appears that this alteration in fibroblast function may be related to the release of free fatty acids (FFAs)... The hypertrophic adipocytes elaborate inflammatory cytokines and are associated with a majority of M1 inflammatory-type macrophages, whereas small healthy adipocytes do not have that effect and are associated predominantly with M2 regenerative-type macrophages.
Why this rating
Level of Evidence 5 (Therapeutic) editorial; cites in vitro and ex vivo studies.
Source
Adipose Tissue, Regeneration, and Skin Health: The Next Regenerative Frontier
Alan D. Widgerow · Aesthetic Surgery Journal Open Forum · 2024
DOI 10.1093/asjof/ojae117
narrative_reviewCited 8×
Read the paper DOI resolved against Crossref · corpus check 2026-06-10
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