it is becoming increasingly evident that adipose tissue has major endocrine roles
adipokines is a term being used to categorise proteins released from adipose tissue, however, as they do not generally act upon the immune system, they are not grouped under cytokines and may be better referred to as adipose-derived hormones
examples include:
leptin
adiponectin
apelin
chemerin
visfatin
retinol binding protein 4 (RBP4)
resistin
plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 (PAI-1)
asprosin
secreted primarily by adipose tissue, regulates energy balance by stimulating the liver to release glucose and signaling the brain to promote appetite
increased levels occur after fasting
appears to reduce weight gain in post menopausal women1)