Brown adipose tissue (BAT), also called brown fat, is responsible for non-shivering thermogenesis. It is an endocrine organ that plays a key role in glucose and lipid metabolism by consuming fatty acids and glucose and regulating energy homeostasis. Brown fat burns calories into heat.

Having the right quantity of brown fat is very important for human health. Too little or too much BAT results in metabolic imbalance. Having too little of it can lead to obesity and metabolic diseases such as type 2 diabetes. On the other hand, too much BAT results in increased energy expenditure, leading to poor outcomes in patients with cancer and chronic diseases such as  chronic kidney disease, chronic heart failure and HIV-AIDS.

Today, there are no products or methods approved for non-invasive detection of BAT. Such a product would enable patient stratification and predict therapy outcomes.