Subepidermal glands of the body of Troglocaridicola sp. (from the cavemicolous shrimp Troglocaris sp. in eastern Italy) were observed by transmission electron microscopy. The reservoir and duct of the glands arc lined with longitudinal microlubulcs. Membrane-bound granules inside the gland show a distinctive pattern: they contain fibres, 18 nm in diameter, regularly arranged in bundles with a 5 nm space between libres. From a survey of the available literature on glands of Platyhelminthes, it is concluded that this structure is known only in this species. Glands with regularly arranged 18 nm fibres, if characteristic for the Scutariellidae, could be considered an autapomorphy of this family, distinguishing it from other members of the Temnocephalida.
In mesophyll chloroplasts of control plants of grape vine (Vilis vinifera L.) growing in greenhouse, grana consisted of 3-10 thylakoids interconnected by long stroma thylakoids. Chloroplasts in magnesium-deficient plants were characterized by a dense stroma, poorly distinquished fme stroma lamellae, and by an accumulation of large osmiophilic globules. Under iron deficiency, the chloroplasts exerted two types of damage of intemal structure: (7) grana consisted of 2-6 thylakoids, the stroma lamellae were destructed; (2) grana were reduced, the stroma lamel ae were broken into short thick fragments, that were laid successively in the direction along the axis of the chloroplasts.
Spermiogenesis in Phyllobothrium lactuca Beneden, 1850 begins with the formation of a differentiation zone bordered by cortical microtubules and containing a nucleus and two ccntrioles separated by an intercentriolar body and disposed one in the prolongation of the other. Later, formation of flagellar buds, striated roots and a median cytoplasmic extension takes place. Each centriole gives rise to a flagellimi that rotates and fuses with the median cytoplasmic extension. At this stage, arched membranes appear at the front of the differentiation zone. The nucleus elongates, becomes filiform and migrates between the striated roots into the spermatid. After the migration of the nucleus, the old spermatid separates from the residual cytoplasm by strangulation of the ring of arched membranes. Absence of striated roots, right at the beginning of spermiogenesis has never been described before in the Tctraphyllidea. Likewise, centrioles made up of doublets of microtubules and spermatids with two axonemes have never been reported before during spermiogenesis of a Phyllobothriidae. In this work we show, for the first time, the existence in cestodes of thick-walled microtubulcs surrounded by a layer of electron-dense material. In addition, we describe, for the first time, the existence of an accumulation of electron-dense granules around striated roots and an hour-glass-shaped constriction at the anterior extremity of a median cytoplasmic extension in a platyhelminth.
The ‘buccal complex’ of Pricea multae Chauhan, 1945 consists of two buccal suckers, the pharynx, a putative taste organ and the mouth cavity. The two suckers are dorsal to the mouth cavity, and the pharynx posterior to them. The septum in each sucker consists of connective tissue containing muscle filaments, lined by tegument with short irregular microvilli. The mouth cavity and the lumen of the suckers are lined by tegument with short irregular lamellae and by tegument with long bulbous, interconnected lamellae, separated from each other and from the body surface tegument by septate junctions. A ventral extension of the mouth cavity is also lined by tegument with short irregular lamellae. An anterior ‘taste organ’ is lined by ‘normal’ (body) tegument and tegument with short irregular lamellae. Glandular ducts open into it, and it contains many small uni-ciliate and multiciliate receptors, as well as two receptor complexes each consisting of a large non-ciliate receptor surrounded by small and large uniciliate receptors, with multiciliate receptors closeby. The four types of receptors are described in detail. The anterior part of the pharyngeal lumen is lined by an epithelium with dense surface lamellae and is penetrated by non-ciliate receptors. Attention is drawn to significant differences between the buccal complexes of the polyopisthocotylean monogeneans Pricea multae (Gastrocotylidae), Gotocotyla secunda (Tripartii, 1956) (Gastrocotylidae), Pulylabroides australis (Murray, 1931) (Microcotylidae), Zeuxapia serialae (Meserve, 1938) (Axinidae) and Diclidophora merlangi (Kuhn, 1832) (Diclidophoridae).
While the majority of polyopisthocotylean monogeneans feed on blood, some polystomatids infecting chelonians do not. This study examined the gastrodermis of two polystomatids, one - Neopolystoma spratti Pichelin, 1995 - from the conjunctival sac of a chelonian and the other - Concinnocotyla australensis (Reichenbach-Klinke, 1966) - from the oral cavity, gill arches and primary gill lamellae of a fish, and also found no evidence of blood feeding. However, the gastrodermal architecture in both species basically resembles that found in blood feeding polyopisthocotyleans, with alternation of lamellated digestive cells and an intervening syncytium. In C. australensis, oesophageal secretion appeared to be responsible for initial extracellular digestion and this was followed by pinocytotic uptake of partly degraded material in pits between the numerous apical lamellae of digestive cells. Posterior dorsolateral gut pockets unique to C. australensis were shown to be blind sacs separated from the external environment by a narrow cytoplasmic bridge, composed of a thin layer of tegument apposed to a thin layer of pocket syncytial epithelium. The pockets are lined with greatly folded syncytium and set in a “capsule” of tissue in which numerous pro-tonephridial flame cells are embedded. It is suggested that the pockets have an osmoregulatory function related to the particular environment and evolutionary history of the host, the primitive lung fish (Dipnoi) Neoceratodus forsteri (Krefft, 1870).
Ultrastructure of the primitive epithelium of Echinostoma revolutum (Digenea: Echinostomatidae) cercaria was studied. The germinal balls and developing cercariae are covered with the primitive epithelium in daughter rediae. When the definitive tegument of the cercaria is differentiated, the primitive epithelium degenerates. The last remnants of the primitive epithelium in a cercaria can be detected at the stage when the lateral gland cells have released their secretion into the definitive tegument.
The ultrastructure of the scolex tegument, bothridial pits (“ciliated pits) and rhyncheal system of Otobothrium mugilis Hiscock, 1954 is described from plerocerci collected from the teleosts Arius graeffei Kncr ct Steindachner and Mugil cephalus Linnaeus. Scanning electron microscopy revealed that filamentous microtriches with shortened caps are abundant across the entire surface of the tegument. Palmate microtriches are dominant on the bothridia and their margins. The surfaces of bothridial pits were covered with large bifid microtrichcs. The bothridial pits arc strongly muscularised invaginations of the tegument. Nervous tissues were not observed within the pits and it is probable that these structures function as accessory attachment structures. The wall of each tentacle sheath consists of one to three bands of fibrils, lined internally by a thin cytoplasmic layer. The tentacular walls are cellular, containing myofilaments. The fibrils of the tentacular walls are arranged into discrete blocks of parallel fibrils and appear to be intracellular. Tentacular walls are lined externally by a modified membrane with an external glycocalyx. Tentacular hooks arc solid, bound externally by a membrane. The body of the hook contains numerous longitudinal canaliculi and an elcctron-opaquc medulla lies at the centre of the hook.
The ultrastructure of three types of unicellular scolex gland cells in adult cestode Bothriocephalus claviceps (Goeze, 1782) is described. The first type - apocrine gland cells transport their secretion (small rounded electron dense granules) via thin ducts into the tegument where it accumulates as projections on the body surface. The second type - eccrine gland cells press out their secretion (large oval electron dense granules) through ducts which open to the exterior surface of the tegument. The third type - microapocrine gland cells transport their secretion (large rounded electron dense granules) through thin cytoplasmic processes into the distal cytoplasm of the tegument. The secretory discharge occurs by means of évaginations of the outer tegumental plasmalemma and their subsequent detachment. The possible functions of the scolex gland cells are discussed.
The changes in pigment-protein composition of chloroplasts in Vigna unguiculata (L.) Walp seedlings grown under control and ultraviolet-B (UV-B) enhanced radiation at various temperatures were studied. The chlorophyll-protein (CP) complexes isolated from seedlings after 60 h of continuous UV-B enhanced radiation treatment showed temperature-dependent changes in their levels. At 10 ^C, well marked CPI, CP2a, CP47, CP2 and free pigment bands were seen in UV-B treated seedlings while control seedlings had no detectable green bands. UV-B enhanced radiation decreased the level of CPI, CP2a and CP2 complexes which was more pronounced at 20 and 30 °C than at 40 oC. The analysis of chloroplast polypeptides revealed a drastic decrease in the levels of 55, 47, 33, 25, 23, 22 and 17 kDa polypeptides in UV-B treated seedlings at 20 and 30 oC, and marginal decrease in the levels of 47, 43 and 16 kDa polypeptides at 40 ^C. In contrast to this, at 10 oC large increase in many polypeptides was noticed in UV-B treated seedlings.