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Do woodlice (Isopoda: Oniscidea) produce endogenous cellulases?

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Abstract

In studies on digestive processes and microorganisms in the gut of the common woodlouse, Porcellio scaber (Isopoda: Oniscidea), we observed marked contradictions between the activity of cellulolytic enzymes and the number of microorganisms. The anterior hindgut exhibited the highest cellulolytic activity, but was characterized by low microbial counts. Due to the presence of endosymbiotic bacteria in the midgut lobes that appear to produce cellulases, we suggest that the cellulases that are active in the hindgut of woodlice are of endogenous origin.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Zoology – Physiological Ecology, University of Cologne, Weyertal 119, D-50931 Cologne, Germany, Fax: (221) 470-5038; e-mail: mzimmer@mother.biolan.uni-koeln.de, , , , , , DE

    M. Zimmer & W. Topp

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  1. M. Zimmer
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  2. W. Topp
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Received: 4 April 1997

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Zimmer, M., Topp, W. Do woodlice (Isopoda: Oniscidea) produce endogenous cellulases?. Biol Fertil Soils 26, 155–156 (1997). https://doi.org/10.1007/s003740050360

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s003740050360

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