Abstract: The midgut epithelium of insects is responsible for enzyme production, digestion, and secretion. The proliferation and apoptosis pattern of midgut in Apis mellifera ligustica was comparatively studied by using 5-bromo-2-deoxyuridine (BrdU) incorporation and the terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase mediated dUTP nick end labeling (TUNEL) technique. The results showed that during larval development the midgut size increase resulted from digestive cell proliferation and from the increase of digestive cell number due to differentiation of regenerative cells. During metamorphosis, the larval midgut epithelium degenerated and the pupal epithelial cells due to differentiation of larval regenerative cells replaced the larval epithelial cells. The regenerative cells occurred during the whole developmental stages of the midgut. Regenerative cell proliferation and differentiation result in the growth and change in midgut epithelium of honeybee. This study provides a theoretical basis for apoptosis and autophagy research.

Key words: Apis mellifera ligustica, midgut, regenerative cells, BrdU, TUNEL