CD8A and Obesity: Studies using rodent models of diet-induced obesity to investigate the time course of immune cell accumulation in adipose tissue suggest that T lymphocytes precede macrophage infiltration/proliferation12, 15 and that cytotoxic (CD8+) lymphocytes in particular may be key mediators of early adipose tissue inflammation, insulin resistance and macrophage migration, activation and differentiation.15 These animal models provide extremely useful insights but require confirmation in humans, especially since obesity typically occurs over a much longer period than diet-induced obesity in rodents.