White adipose tissue

Adipose tissue macrophages

Cytokine

Macrophage

Biology

Epistemology

Endocrinology

Interleukin 6

Philosophy

Adipose tissue

In vitro

Immunology

Inflammation

Signal transduction

Interleukin

Mechanism (biology)

Cell biology

Biochemistry

Immune system

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences

Significance Chronic low-grade inflammation is a key driver of metabolic syndrome. This inflammatory response is mediated by immune-cell infiltration and the expression of inflammatory cytokines. IL6 is implicated in this response, but the physiological role of IL6 signaling is unclear. Here, we demonstrate that the source of IL6 influences the nature of the inflammatory response. We report that IL6 secreted by myeloid cells inhibits adipose tissue macrophage (ATM) accumulation by a canonical signaling mechanism, but IL6 secreted by adipocytes or muscle promotes ATM accumulation by a noncanonical mechanism. These observations provide physiological insight into the complexity of IL6-mediated regulation of inflammation.

Regulation of adipose tissue inflammation by interleukin 6