The regulation of lipid and carbohydrate storage by the splicing factor gene in the fat body.

Excess triglycerides from the diet are stored in structures called lipid droplets in adipose tissue. Genome-wide RNAi screens have identified mRNA splicing factors as important for lipid droplet formation; however, the full complement of splicing factors that regulate lipid storage is not known. Here, we characterize the role of , the gene encoding for a splicing protein involved in recognizing the 5' splice site in introns, in regulating lipid and carbohydrate storage in the fat body. Decreasing specifically in the fly fat body resulted in less triglyceride, glycogen, and glucose in each fat body cell. Consistent with these decreased nutrient storage phenotypes, flies ate less, providing a potential cause for less lipid and carbohydrate storage in these flies. These data further support the role of mRNA processing in regulating metabolic homeostasis in .