Epicardial Fat from Guinea Pig: A Model to Study the Paracrine Network of Interactions between Epicardial Fat and Myocardium?

Background Epicardial adipose tissue (Epi) is a fat depot which is closely apposed on the myocardium. Several lines of evidence suggest that it is not only a lipid-storing depot, but also an active endocrine organ which secrets inflammatory cytokines and chemolines as suggested for other types of visceral fat.