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Ultrastructure of the gonad and gametogenesis in the eastern oyster,Crassostrea virginica. II. Testis and spermatogenesis

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Abstract

The ultrastructural features of the testis and spermatogenesis have been described from the eastern oyster,Crassostrea virginica (Gmelin, 1791). The testis is a diffuse organ consisting of branching acini containing differentiating sperm in a variety of stages. Spermatogonia are located nearest the outer wall of the acinus, while spermatocytes and spermatids are positioned nearer the lumen. Mature spermatozoa are all confined to the central region of the acinus. The acinus is surrounded by an intermittent layer of myoepithelial cells and is bathed by a $uid-filled hemocoel. Vesicular connective tissue (VCT cells) fills the region between adjacent acini, and the cells contain glycogen granules and lipid droplets. Each acinus is divided radially into subcompartments that are partially separated by pleomorphic accessory cells which remain in close contact with sperm until late stages of development. Sperm are similar to those described in other oysters, except that five midpiece mitochondria were observed in some sperm rather than the usual four, and the acrosomal vesicle lacked the “whorled” substructure described in some other oyster sperm. We suggest that the neutral term “accessory cells” be applied to bivalve testicular somatic cells until more detailed studies are available to justify the use of “Sertoli cell” and other descriptive terms which have previously been adopted from other taxa only distantly related to bivalves.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Darling Marine Center, University of Maine, 04573, Walpole, Maine, USA

    K. J. Eckelbarger

  2. Department of Animal, Veterinary & Aquatic Sciences, Hitchner Hall, University of Maine, 04469, Orono, Maine, USA

    C. V. Davis

Authors
  1. K. J. Eckelbarger
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  2. C. V. Davis
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Communicated by J. P. Grassle, New Brunswick

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Eckelbarger, K.J., Davis, C.V. Ultrastructure of the gonad and gametogenesis in the eastern oyster,Crassostrea virginica. II. Testis and spermatogenesis. Mar. Biol. 127, 89–96 (1996). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00993648

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00993648

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