fat cell

American  

noun

Biology.

1. a cell in loose connective tissue that is specialized for the synthesis and storage of fat.

---

Etymology

Origin of fat cell

First recorded in 1910–15

Example Sentences

Researchers hope that understanding how proteins like HSL regulate fat cell health could eventually lead to more targeted therapies for metabolic disease.

From Science Daily • May 8, 2026

These proteins facilitate many of our body's physiological processes, including gut function, liver and fat cell metabolism, and skin elasticity.

From Science Daily • Dec. 21, 2023

For example, an MDM2-targeting drug shrank deep-tissue fat cell tumors in just one out of 20 patients in a phase I safety trial, published in 2012.

From Science Magazine • Oct. 5, 2016

But researchers are learning that the role of fat in metabolism changes depending on where it is in the body, and even on the type of fat cell.

From Nature • Apr. 16, 2014

A fat cell and a muscle cell are as different as a gas tank and an engine: One stores energy, and one burns it.

From Washington Post