Brown Adipose Tissue in the Buccal Fat Pad during Infancy

BACKGROUND: The buccal fat pad (BFP) is an encapsulated mass of adipose tissue thought to enhance the sucking capabilities of the masticatory muscles during infancy. To date, no conclusive evidence has been provided as to the composition of the BFP in early postnatal life. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to examine whether the BFP of neonates and infants is primarily composed of white adipose tissue (WAT) or brown adipose tissue (BAT). MATERIALS AND METHODS: The percentage of fat in the BFP in 32 full-term infants (16 boys and 16 girls), aged one day to 10.6 months, was measured using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) determinations of fat fraction. RESULTS: BFP fat fraction increased with age (r = 0.67; P<.0001) and neonates had significantly lower values when compared to older infants; 72.6±9.6 vs. 91.8±2.4, P<.0001. Multiple regression analysis indicated that the age-dependent relationship persisted after accounting for gender, gestational age, and weight percentile (P = .001). Two subjects (aged one and six days) depicted a change in the MRI characteristics of the BFP from primarily BAT to WAT at follow-up examinations two to six weeks later, respectively. Histological post-mortem studies of a 3 day and 1.1 month old revealed predominantly BAT and WAT in the BFP, respectively. CONCLUSION: The BFP is primarily composed of BAT during the first weeks of life, but of WAT thereafter. Studies are needed to investigate the contributions of BAT in the BFP to infant feeding and how it is altered by postnatal nutrition.