Three aspects of sexual reproduction and development of a Puerto Rican strain of Schistosoma mansoni in white mice were studied. It has long been known that the male in the genus Schistosoma is essential for the somatic and reproductive development of the female, but no critical study has been reported to date on whether or not the reverse is true. / In order to determine what influence, if any, the female may have on the development of male worms, somatic growth and reproductive development of males from bi- and unisexual infections were compared. No difference was noted between males of identical ages from bi- and unisexual infections (of 20 to 120 days) with respect to length, degree of reproductive development, and meiotic events. / The sequence of meiotic events in the male S. mansoni is typical of most diploid organisms: chromosome condensation, synapsis, and balanced distribution to the gametes. The mean chiasma frequency was 23.22 $\pm$ 1.4. This strain has, on the average 11.61 cross-overs or 1161 units of map lengths. / Light and transmission electron microscopy showed that the spermatozoa of Schistosomatium douthitti and Heterobilharzia americana conform to the "standard" digenean sperm morphology (filiform, with 2 axial complexes of the 9+1 microtubule arrangement), whereas the sperm of S. mansoni are more bulbous with one axoneme. S. douthitti and H. americana sperm have two free flagella that emerge posteriorly, whereas S. mansoni sperm has a single flagellum. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 49-03, Section: B, page: 0604. / Major Professor: Robert B. Short. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1987.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:fsu.edu/oai:fsu.digital.flvc.org:fsu_76251 |
| Contributors | Dario, Juville Gallano., Florida State University |
| Source Sets | Florida State University |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Text |
| Format | 100 p. |
| Rights | On campus use only. |
| Relation | Dissertation Abstracts International |
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