Intra-abdominal fat is an established risk factor for the metabolic syndrome. In this issue of Cell Metabolism, Tran et al. (2008) test the cell-autonomous and location-related properties of transplanted intra-abdominal and subcutaneous fat depots. While subcutaneous fat seems to confer metabolic benefits, species differences in adipose biology justify caution in interpreting the results.

Information systems open up a broad range of possibilities for new forms of organization and electronic business on a global scale. Traditional organizational boundaries are dissolving and new organizational forms are emerging. Business “any time & any place” often seems to be the logical consequence. The gradual dissolution of temporal and spatial constraints in business processes, however, pa...

Although high levels of tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) generally correlate with good prognosis in high-grade serous ovarian cancer (HGSC) patients, little is known about the phenotype or specificity of these cells. We have recently demonstrated that TIL expressing the intra-epithelial lymphocyte marker CD103 (official name, integrin αE, ITGAE) abundantly infiltrate HGSCs, strongly correl...

Metastatic cell heterogeneity presents a significant obstacle to the development of targeted molecular and immunotherapeutics. Profiling of melanocyte differentiation antigens has revealed a nonstochastic, site-specific pattern of expression in metastases that was highest in brain, intermediate in soft tissues/lymph nodes, and lowest in visceral sites. Site-specific antigen heterogeneity, thus,...

Pain is a useful sensation. Nociceptive pain provides warning of impending or actual tissue damage and prompts aversive or attentive actions that protect the body from harm. People who do not feel pain, due to mutation of certain ion channels (1), suffer a lifetime of otherwise avoidable injuries. The consequences of losing the ability to feel pain also are highlighted by the symptoms and clini...