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The neuromuscular system in freshwater furcocercaria from Belarus. II Diplostomidae, Strigeidae, and Cyathocotylidae

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Abstract

The neuromuscular system (NMS) in cercariae of Diplostomum pseudospathaceum, Cotylurus szidati, Australapatemon burti, Holostephanus volgensis, and Paracoenogonimus ovatus was studied with immunocytochemical methods and confocal scanning laser microscopy. The patterns of F-actin in the musculature, 5-HT immunoreactive (−IR), FMRF-amide-IR neuronal elements, and α-tubulin-IR in sensory receptors were investigated. The NMS in the five species studied were compared with each other and with three species of Schistosomatidae studied earlier (Bilharziella polonica, Trichobilharzia szidati, and Trichobilharzia franki). No major structural differences in the musculature, the 5-HT-IR or FMRF-IR neuronal elements were noticed between the cercariae. The minor variations observed in the musculature were related to the size and organization of the muscle fibers. The checked pattern formed by the transverse muscle fibers in the tail stems of D. pseudospathaceum, C. szidati, A. burti, H. volgensis, and P. ovatus was not observed in B. polonica, T. szidati, and T. franki. A trend in the differentiation of the longitudinal muscle fibers in the furca from evenly distributed fibers in H. volgensis and P. ovatus to many bundles in D. pseudospathaceum and two well-organized lateral bundles in C. szidati, A. burti, and Trichobilharzia spp. was observed. The transverse muscle fibers in the furca follow the same trend. The number of 5-HT-IR neurons in the cercarial bodies varied between 10 and 16. In cercariae of H. volgensis and P. ovatus, the central nervous system (CNS) was less centralized compared to the CNS in the other species studied, with only two 5-HT-IR marker neurons in each brain ganglion and the other neurons distributed evenly along the main cords. In the tails of H. volgensis and P. ovatus, many transverse 5-HT-IR comissures were found. In the tails of higher strigeidid cercariae, only a few crosslinks were observed. The number and distribution of sensory receptors on the bodies and tails of the cercarial species differed from each other. A trend in the differentiation of the sensory receptors in the tails was discerned. A process of grouping and decrease in number of ciliated receptors in the stem and in the furca from H. volgensis and P. ovatus to Schistosomatid cercariae took place.

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Acknowledgments

The authors thank the staff and students of Biological Station of Belarus State University for the friendly atmosphere and help. The study was supported by RFBR grant 09-04-00243-a, grant of the President of Russian Federation MК-1093.2011.4, The Research Institute of the Foundation of the Åbo Akademi University, the Rector of Åbo Akademi University and the Academy of Finland. The authors want to thank Mr. Esa Nummelin for the technical assistance.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Centre of Parasitology of A. N. Severtsov Institute of Ecology and Evolution, Russian Academy of Sciences, Leninsky prospect, 33, Moscow, 119071, Russia

    Oleg O. Tolstenkov & Nadezhda B. Terenina

  2. Laboratory of Parasitology, State Scientific and Production Amalgamation “The Scientific and Practical Center for Bioresources”, 27 Akademicheskaya Street, Minsk, 220072, Republic of Belarus

    Ludmila N. Akimova

  3. Department of Biology, Åbo Akademi University, 20520, Turku, Finland

    Margaretha K. S. Gustafsson

Authors
  1. Oleg O. Tolstenkov
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  2. Ludmila N. Akimova
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  3. Nadezhda B. Terenina
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  4. Margaretha K. S. Gustafsson
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Correspondence to Oleg O. Tolstenkov.

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Tolstenkov, O.O., Akimova, L.N., Terenina, N.B. et al. The neuromuscular system in freshwater furcocercaria from Belarus. II Diplostomidae, Strigeidae, and Cyathocotylidae. Parasitol Res 110, 583–592 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00436-011-2526-x

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