Electron Density of Adipose Tissues Determined by Phase-Contrast Computed Tomography Provides a Measure for Mitochondrial Density and Fat Content.

Phase-contrast computed tomography (PCCT) is an X-ray-based imaging method measuring differences in the refractive index during tissue passage. While conventional X-ray techniques rely on the absorption of radiation due to differing tissue-specific attenuation coefficients, PCCT enables the determination of the electron density (ED). By the analysis of respective phantoms and specimens, we identified the components responsible for different electron densities in murine adipose tissue depots to be cellular fat and mitochondrial content, two parameters typically different between white adipose tissue (WAT) and brown adipose tissue (BAT).