5-5 ADIPOSE TISSUE

MULTILOCULAR ADIPOSE TISSUE

In humans, multilocular adipose tissue exists during fetal life, chiefly in the pelvic and shoulder girdle regions. Most of it slowly disappears after birth.

This tissue is of great importance in hibernating animals, especially during the period of their emergence from hibernation. During this stage the mitochondria of the multilocular adipocytes release heat instead of producing ATP. The liberated heat warms the blood of vessels that pass through the multilocular adipose tissue and slowly warms the rest of the body.

The cytoplasm of multilocular adipocytes is almost entirely occupied by small lipid droplets, giving the cells a spongy appearance.
The nuclei of these adipocytes are spherical and located in the center or at theperiphery of the cells. There is always a very distinct band of cytoplasm at the cell’s periphery.

By hovering the cursor or clicking on the images, several adipocytes are highlighted, allowing you to see their boundaries, the cytoplasm containing lipid droplets (in yellow or pink) and nuclei (in blue).