Ultrastructure of the foregut and associated glands of Calicotyle kröyeri (Monogenea: Monopisthocotylea)

Abstract

The mouth, pharynx and oesophagus of Calicotyle are lined by syncytial epithelia, and there are numerous unicellular glands associated with the oesophagus. An infolding of unmodified external tegument lines the mouth cavity and is connected by discrete cytoplasmic processes to subjacent perikarya. It contains two types of secretory body and its luminal surface is invested with a finely filamentous coating. The pharynx and oesophagus are lined by irregularly-folded epithelia that are interconnected by a septate desmosome. Membranous inclusions distinguish the pharynx epithelium and there is a well developed basal lamina for insertion of the pharyngeal muscles. The oesophagus epithelium is perforated by the openings of the oesophageal glands. These lie in the surrounding parenchyma and produce a dense, membrane-bound secretion which is conveyed by duct-like extensions of the glands to the oesophagus lumen. The ducts are supported in places by microtubules and are anchored to the oesophageal epithelium by septate desmosomes. A septate desmosome also marks the junction between the epithelium and the gut caeca.