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Morphophysiological study of digestive system litter-feeding termite Cornitermes cumulans (Kollar, 1832)

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Abstract

Termites are the major decomposers of lignocellulosic biomass on Earth and are commonly considered as biological reactor models for lignocellulose degradation. Despite their biotechnological potential, few studies have focused on the morphophysiological aspects of the termite digestive system. We therefore analyze the morphology, ultrastructure and gut luminal pH of the digestive system in workers of the litter-feeding termite Cornitermes cumulans (Blattodea: Termitidae). Their digestive system is composed of salivary glands and an alimentary canal with a pH ranging from neutral to alkaline. The salivary glands have an acinar structure and present cells with secretory characteristics. The alimentary canal is differentiated into the foregut, midgut, mixed segment and hindgut, which comprises the ileum (p1), enteric valve (p2), paunch (p3), colon (p4) and rectum (p5) segments. The foregut has a well-developed chewing system. The midgut possesses a tubular peritrophic membrane and two cell types: digestive cells with secretory and absorptive features and several regenerative cells in mitosis, both cell types being organized into regenerative crypts. The mixed segment exhibits cells rich in glycogen granules. Hindgut p1, p4 and p5 segments have flattened cells with a few apical invaginations related to mitochondria and a thick cuticular lining. Conversely, the hindgut p3 segment contains large cuboid cells with extensive apical invaginations associated with numerous mitochondria. These new insights into the morphophysiology of the digestive system of C. cumulans reveal that it mobilizes lignocellulose components as a nutritional source by means of a highly compartmentalized organization with specialized segments and complex microenvironments.

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Acknowledgements

We express our gratitude to Diogo Gama dos Santos for his help with termite collection; the Rudolph Barth Electron Microscopy Platform at the Oswaldo Cruz Foundation, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, for access to the transmission electron microscope used in this work; the National Center for Structural Biology and Bio-imaging at the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, for access to the stereo zoom microscope used in the immunohistochemical analysis; and the NIH Fellows Editorial Board for editorial assistance. This work was supported by the Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES), Fundação Carlos Chagas Filho de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado do Rio de Janeiro (FAPERJ) and the Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Laboratório de Bioquímica de Insetos e Parasitos (Labip), Instituto de Biofísica Carlos Chagas Filho, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Cidade Universitária, Prédio do CCS, Bloco D, Sala 13, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil, 21941-590

    Géssica de Sousa, Ana Cristina Bahia, Fabio Mendonça Gomes & Ednildo de Alcantara Machado

  2. Laboratório de Fisiologia de Insetos Hematófagos, Departamento de Parasitologia, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Brazil

    Vânia Cristina dos Santos & Nelder de Figueiredo Gontijo

  3. Laboratório de Termitologia, Departamento de Zoologia, Universidade de Brasília, Brasília, Brazil

    Reginaldo Constantino

  4. Laboratório de Bioquímica de Artrópodes Hematófagos, Instituto de Bioquímica Médica Leopoldo de Meis, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

    Gabriela de Oliveira Paiva e Silva

  5. Laboratory of Malaria and Vector Research, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Md., USA

    Fabio Mendonça Gomes

  6. Diretoria de Metrologia Aplicada às Ciências da Vida, Instituto Nacional de Metrologia Qualidade e Tecnologia, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

    Ednildo de Alcantara Machado

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  1. Géssica de Sousa
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  2. Vânia Cristina dos Santos
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  7. Fabio Mendonça Gomes
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  8. Ednildo de Alcantara Machado
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Correspondence to Ednildo de Alcantara Machado.

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de Sousa, G., dos Santos, V.C., de Figueiredo Gontijo, N. et al. Morphophysiological study of digestive system litter-feeding termite Cornitermes cumulans (Kollar, 1832). Cell Tissue Res 368, 579–590 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00441-017-2584-1

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