Ultrastructural studies on euspermatozoa and paraspermatozoa in Mantispidae (Insecta, Neuroptera)

Z.V. Zizzari, R. Machida, K. Tsutsumi, D. Reynoso-Velasco, P. Lupetti, R. Dallai

    Research output: Contribution to JournalArticleAcademicpeer-review

    Abstract

    Previous studies have demonstrated the presence of sperm dimorphism in the Mantispidae Perlamantispa perla. We extended the study on several other mantidflies. In all the examined species the occurrence of euspermatozoa (typical) and paraspermatozoa (atypical) was established. The euspermatozoa are characterized by the presence of a cylindrical nucleus surrounded by an envelope that fans out laterally into two thin wings of different length. The acrosome seems to be missing. The nucleus is surrounded by extracellular material. The flagellum is provided with a 9 + 9 + 2 axonemal pattern; the accessory tubules contain 16 protofilaments and the intertubular material has the distribution typical of the taxon. Two elongated accessory bodies flank partially the axoneme and connect this structure with the mitochondrial derivatives. The flagellar axoneme of paraspermatozoa consists of an axoneme and two giant mitochondrial derivatives filled with large globular units. The axoneme exhibits a 9 + 9 + 2 pattern, in which the central 9 + 2 units have a normal structure, in that the microtubular doublets are provided with both dynein arms and radial links. On the contrary, the nine accessory microtubules have a large diameter and their tubular wall consists of 40 protofilaments. This comparative study provided evidences about the uniformity of sperm ultrastructure in Mantispidae. The function of non-fertilizing giant sperm in mantidflies is discussed.
    Original languageEnglish
    Pages (from-to)81-87
    Number of pages7
    JournalTissue and Cell
    Volume42
    Issue number2
    Early online date12 Jan 2010
    DOIs
    Publication statusPublished - Apr 2010

    Fingerprint

    Dive into the research topics of 'Ultrastructural studies on euspermatozoa and paraspermatozoa in Mantispidae (Insecta, Neuroptera)'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

    Cite this