Interaction of immune cells and fat body during metamorphosis in Apis mellifera


We observe that during metamorphosis, Drosophila larval adipose tissue is infiltrated by macrophages, which remove dying adipocytes by efferocytosis and engulf leaking RNA-protein granules and lipids from these cells. Consequently, the infiltrating macrophages transiently adopt the adipocyte-like metabolic profile to convert remnants of dying adipocytes to lipoproteins and storage peptides that nutritionally support post-metamorphic development.

Moreover, we propose that infiltration of larval fat body during metamorphosis may represent an evolutionarily conserved proces in holometabolous insects as we observe such interaction also during metamorphosis of honeybee Apis mellifera.