ARS Research- Genomic Regulation of Seasonal Infertility in Swine

Mature fat cells from cattle and pigs may resume cell division and add to the population of fat cell fibroblasts or form other cell types. Cultures of mature pig-derived fat cells began to reestablish their ability to divide. The fat contained within the cytoplasm was either moved to ends of the cell, or large fat droplets were physically extruded from the cell. The cell lipid droplet was handled in a different manner to that by beef-derived fat cells. This difference in fat handling and trafficking may represent a novel mechanism in fat cell resumption of proliferation.