c-MAF–dependent perivascular macrophages regulate diet-induced metabolic syndrome

Abstract

Macrophages are an essential part of tissue development and physiology. Perivascular macrophages have been described in tissues and appear to play a role in development and disease processes, although it remains unclear what the key features of these cells are. Here, we identify a subpopulation of perivascular macrophages in several organs, characterized by their dependence on the transcription factor c-MAF and displaying nonconventional macrophage markers including LYVE1, folate receptor 2, and CD38. Conditional deletion of c-MAF in macrophage lineages caused ablation of perivascular macrophages in the brain and altered muscularis macrophages program in the intestine. In the white adipose tissue (WAT), c-MAF–deficient perivascular macrophages displayed an altered gene expression profile, which was linked to an increased vascular branching. Upon feeding high-fat diet (HFD), mice with c-MAF–deficient macrophages showed improved metabolic parameters compared with wild-type mice, including less weight gain, greater glucose tolerance, and reduced inflammatory cell profile in WAT. These results define c-MAF as a central regulator of the perivascular macrophage transcriptional program in vivo and reveal an important role for this tissue-resident macrophage population in the regulation of metabolic syndrome.