Data Descriptor: The cell-type specific transcriptome in human adipose tissue and influence of obesity on adipocyte progenitors Anna Ehrlund 1 , Juan R. Acosta 1 , Christel Björk 1 , Per Hedén 2 , Iyadh Douagi 3 , Peter Arner 1 & Jurga Laurencikiene 1 Obesity affects gene expression and metabolism of white adipose tissue (WAT), which results in insulin resistance (IR) and type 2 diabetes. However, WAT is a heterogeneous organ containing many cell types that might respond differently to obesity-induced changes. We performed flow cytometry sorting and RNA expression profiling by microarray of major WAT cell types (adipocytes, CD45 - /CD31 - /CD34+ progenitors, CD45+/CD14+ monocytes/ macrophages, CD45+/CD14 - leukocytes), which allowed us to identify genes enriched in specific cell fractions. Additionally, we included adipocytes and adipocyte progenitor cells obtained from lean and obese individuals. Taken together, we provide a detailed gene expression atlas of major human adipose tissue resident cell types for clinical/basic research and using this dataset provide lists of cell-type specific genes that are of interest for metabolic research. Design Type(s) parallel group design • cell type comparison design Measurement Type(s) transcription profiling assay Technology Type(s) microarray Factor Type(s) Diagnosis • cell type Sample Characteristic(s) Homo sapiens • white adipose tissue 1 Lipid Laboratory, Department of Medicine Huddinge, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm SE-14186, Sweden. 2 Akademikliniken, Storängsvägen 10, Stockholm SE-115 42, Sweden. 3 Center for Hematology and Regenerative Medicine (HERM), Department of Medicine Huddinge, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm SE-14186, Sweden. Correspondence and requests for materials should be addressed to J.L. (email: Jurga.Laurencikiene@ki.se). OPEN Received: 11 May 2017 Accepted: 15 September 2017 Published: 31 October 2017 www.nature.com/scientificdata SCIENTIFIC DATA | 4:170164 | DOI: 10.1038/sdata.2017.164 1