On the possibly kystic nature of multilamellar corpuscles in the midgut gland (MGG) of the apple-snail Pomacea canaliculata (I).

ALBRECHT EA, VEGA IA, GAMARRA-LUQUES C, KOCH E, CASTRO-VÁZQUEZ A

San Luis

Congreso; XIX Reunión Anual de la Sociedad de Biología de Cuyo.; 2001

Sociedad de Biología de Cuyo

On the possibly kystic nature of multilamellar corpuscles in the midgut gland (MGG) of the apple-snail Pomacea canaliculata (I)Pomacea canaliculata (I) Albrecht EA, Vega IA, Gamarra-Luques C, Koch E, Castro-Vazquez A. Lab. of Physiology, IHEM, UNCuyo-CONICET, C. de Correo 33, 5500 Mendoza. E-mail: acv@fmed2.uncu.edu.aracv@fmed2.uncu.edu.ar Under the light microscope, K corpuscles are large, dark-brown concretions apparently contained within alveolar pyramidal cells in the MGG. They have long been interpreted as excretory bodies, although we thought that they might be the kystic counterpart of C corpuscles, the putative vegetative form of a symbiont in the neighbouring columnar cells. Electron microscope studies on MGG alveoli were made. K bodies are contained within a thin cytoplasmic layer, which seems engulfed by the RER- filled cytoplasm of pyramidal cells. The thin, mitochondria bearing cytoplasmic layer might be an extrusion of the neighbouring columnar cells. The electron dense material deposited as the multiple layers of K corpuscles may be syntethized, at least in part, in pyramidal cells and transferred to K corpuscles.