Structural organization of subcutaneous adipose tissue of the shin in human fetuses in normal and pathological conditions

Abstract

Introduction. The early stages of life, especially the fetal stage of ontogenesis, are crucial for shaping metabolic health and obesity risk in adulthood. The prevalence of obesity and the discovery of the broader potential of different types of fat cells have led to a resurgence of scientific interest in the study of adipogenesis. The aim of the study. The study aims to investigate the adipose tissue formation features of the shin in human fetuses of 7-8 months. Material and methods. A microscopic examination of preparations of the upper, middle, and lower thirds of the lower leg of 12 human fetuses with a parietal-coccygeal length (PCL) of 231.0-310.0 mm was carried out. Staining of histological sections with hematoxylin and eosin was used. According to Mikel Calvo's method, a histochemical study of the protein with bromophenol blue was used to better contrast the protein elements of the structures. The percentage of multilocular cells was calculated on digital copies of optical images in the environment of the computer program ImageJ 1.53t (2022) with subsequent statistical processing of quantitative data using the open software "PAST" (Paleontological statistics, version 4.9 2022).