# Unmasking mechanisms of lipolytic dynamics in adipose tissue using high-resolution microfluidic sampling

> **NIH NIH R01** · AUBURN UNIVERSITY AT AUBURN · 2023 · $418,170

## Abstract

While adipose tissue (fat) was traditionally considered important only for energy storage, it is now recognized
to be a complex, multicellular, endocrine organ with profound systemic effects, altering function in nearly all
other organ systems. Despite its importance, there is a lack of information on the dynamic nature of lipolysis,
adipokine secretion, and nutrient uptake, highlighting several unmet needs in methodology. Few techniques
exist to interrogate small amounts of adipose tissue, and our understanding of dynamic function in adipose
tissue is particularly limited, perhaps due to the belated perspective on its endocrine nature and the added
culture and sampling challenges from cell buoyancy. It is clear that better, adipose-customized tools are
needed for this purpose. As shown in our previous two funding periods, we propose that our microfluidic
systems are ideal to meet these ongoing needs, permitting dynamic interrogation of tissue in ways not possible
with standard techniques. Our long-term goal is to use expert insights in endocrine biology (Granneman, Judd)
to drive the development of customized bioanalytical tools (Easley) and in vitro models of the endocrine system
for applications in nutrition, metabolism, and drug discovery. Our short-term objective is to refine and further
develop microfluidic and biosensing methods to answer pressing questions, e.g. lipolytic dynamics via the
ABHD5/PLIN1 interaction pathway, questions that cannot be answered with current methods. The premise is
that unmatched temporal resolution of our droplet-based microfluidic systems provide unique lenses into
lipolytic efflux and protein dynamics. We expect these first-of-their-kind results on adipose function to better
inform human physiology. Thus, the proposal is innovative in its technological and its biological approaches.
Aim 1 of this proposal will multiplex quantification of both glycerol and non-esterified fatty acids (NEFA) from
adipose tissue at high temporal resolution (<5 sec), achieved by integrating droplet-based microfluidic analog-
to-digital circuits (µADC) with salt-water electrode mergers. In Aim 2, we will customize bioanalytical tools for
adipose tissue signaling pathways. µADC devices will quantify secretions at high resolution under ABHD5
ligand treatment. Mix-and-read fluorescence assays will be customized for rapid (off-chip) quantification of
PLIN1 and HSL phosphorylation, and for cAMP levels. Aim 3 will focus on using these novel tools for
mechanistic analysis of substrate and protein efflux in white adipocytes. High-resolution microfluidics, used
with genetically-encoded fluorescent protein sensors, will correlate protein trafficking and interactions with
secretory output. Improved microfluidic digital-to-analog circuits (µDAC) will also be designed for rapid tissue
stimulation during imaging. The rationale for this research is that custom tool development will provide novel
information on adipose tissue dynamics, and we have ...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10654633
- **Project number:** 5R01DK093810-10
- **Recipient organization:** AUBURN UNIVERSITY AT AUBURN
- **Principal Investigator:** Christopher J Easley
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2023
- **Award amount:** $418,170
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2012-06-08 → 2025-06-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10654633

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10654633, Unmasking mechanisms of lipolytic dynamics in adipose tissue using high-resolution microfluidic sampling (5R01DK093810-10). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10654633. Licensed CC0.

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