Abstract
Ingestion and decomposition of wood and cellulose by the three protozoa in the hindgut of Coptotermes formosanus Shiraki were investigated using polarizing microscopy and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Most of wood and cellulose fragments were ingested by the two larger protozoa, Pseudotrichonympha grassii Koidzumi and Holomastigotoides hartmanni Koidzumi, but not by the smallest species, Spirotrichonympha leidyi Koidzumi. Little wood fragments were observed in the hindgut fluid. TEM observations of wood fragments in the body of P. grassii and H. hartmanni clearly indicated that wood polysaccharides such as cellulose were completely decomposed to water-soluble materials by the protozoan enzymes, and that lignin residues were released as a loose fibrous materials.
Published Version
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