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Ultrastructure of flame cells and protonephridial capillaries of Craspedella and Didymorchis (Plathelminthes, Rhabdocoela)

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Summary

The ultrastructure of the flame cells and protonephridial capillaries of the Rhabdocoela Craspedella sp. and Didymorchis sp., ectocommensals on the freshwater crayfish Cherax destructor in eastern Australia is described. The flame cells of both species have variable numbers of cilia without distinct rootlets and with decreasing numbers of axonemal tubules towards the ciliary tips. Bundles of microtubules extend from the cytoplasm adjacent to the ciliary rootlets through the ribs of the weir apparatus into the distal cytoplasmic tube, where the numbers of microtubules gradually decrease. The weir apparatus is formed by a single row of longitudinal ribs connected by a membrane. In Craspedella, but not in Didymorchis, the ribs have external branched leptotriches. Mitochondria are common in the wall of the flame cell of both species. The protonephridial capillary just above the end of the ciliary tuft narrows in both species and bends sharply in Craspedella. The lumen of the flame cell and the capillary is lined by a dark layer of cytoplasm; there is no enlargement of the surface area by microvilli or lamellae. Centrioles were seen in the capillary wall of Craspedella, and in Didymorchis the cytoplasm around the capillaries has a very loose and light appearance. The ultrastructure of the flame cells and capillaries of both species corresponds closely to that of Temnocephala sp.

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Abbreviations

BB :

basal body

CE :

centriole

L :

leptotrich

M :

microtubules

ME :

membrane of weir apparatus

MI :

mitochondrion

PC :

protonephridial capillary

R :

rib (rod) of weir apparatus

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  1. Department of Zoology, University of New England, 2351, Armidale, NSW, Australia

    K. Rohde

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Rohde, K. Ultrastructure of flame cells and protonephridial capillaries of Craspedella and Didymorchis (Plathelminthes, Rhabdocoela). Zoomorphology 106, 346–351 (1987). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00312257

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00312257

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