hormone signaling; adipose tissue
When hormones signal the need for energy, fatty acids and glycerol are released from triglycerides stored in fat cells (adipocytes) and are delivered to organs and tissues in the body.
adipose cell
biology
Also known as: adipocyte, fat cell
adipose cell, connective-tissue cell specialized to synthesize and contain large globules of fat. There are two types of adipose cells: white adipose cells contain large fat droplets, only a small amount of cytoplasm, and flattened, noncentrally located nuclei; and brown adipose cells contain fat droplets of differing size, a large amount of cytoplasm, numerous mitochondria, and round, centrally located nuclei. The colour of brown adipose is attributed to its relatively high density of mitochondria and...