Contributions of white adipose tissue to energy requirements for female reproduction

Body composition impacts female fertility and there are established relationships between adipose tissue and the reproductive system. Maintaining functional adipose tissue is vital for meeting the energetic demands during the reproductive process, from ovulation to delivery and lactation. White adipose tissue (WAT) shows plastic responses to daily physiology and secretes diverse adipokines that affect the hypothalamic–pituitary–ovarian axis, but many other interorgan interactions remain to be determined. This review summarizes the current state of research on the dialogue between WAT and the female reproductive system, focusing on the impact of this crosstalk on ovarian and endometrial factors essential for fecundity.