Neotropical Entomology 34(1):041-045 (2005) Glândulas Tegumentares Epiteliais no Abdome de Rainhas Virgens e Fisogástricas de Scaptogrigona posticaLatreille (Meliponini: Trigonina)RESUMO -Nas operárias das abelhas eussociais, regiões do epitélio tegumentar do abdome podem hipertrofiar-se e tornarem-se glandulares, sendo responsáveis pela produção de cera usada na contrução dos alvéolos de cria. Nos meliponíneos, epitélio com essas características também foi observado nas rainhas, porém sua função ainda continua desconhecida. Teria esse epitélio função homóloga nas operárias? As rainhas, além da função reprodutiva, desempenhariam funções na colônia até então consideradas exclusivas das operárias? Para tentar colaborar no esclarecimento dessas questões realizou-se um estudo histológico e ultra-estrutural das glândulas epiteliais tegumentares do terceiro tergito em rainhas virgens e fisogástricas de Scaptotrigona postica Latreille. Os resultados morfológicos mostraram que o epitélio glandular existe e é facilmente discernível no terceiro tergito das rainhas, sendo muito mais desenvolvido nas fisogástricas do que nas virgens. A ultra-estrutura mostrou que há diferenças no tipo de organização do retículo endoplasmático liso entre as rainhas, o que, juntamente com os resultados da histologia e morfometria, indicam poder haver diferenças funcionais desse epitélio entre elas. Como já observado na literatura, nas rainhas virgens tal epitélio pode estar envolvido na produção de cera e confecção de alvéolos de cria, porém sua função nas rainhas fisogástricas é totalmente desconhecida. A hipótese lançada no presente estudo é de que esse epitélio pode estar envolvido na produção de feromônios que irão atuar nas interações sociais da rainha poedeira.PALAVRAS-CHAVE: Cera, abelha, meliponíneo, histologia, microscopia ABSTRACT -In the eusocial worker bees, portions of the epithelium of the abdominal epidermis may become hypertrophied and glandular, and produce the wax used to build the brood alveoli. In meliponine bees, the presence of similar epithelium was already observed in the queens, but its function is still unknown. Would this epithelium have homologous function in the workers? May the queens display other functions, besides reproduction, related to those considered exclusive of workers? In order to contribute to solve these questions, a histological and ultrastructural study of the tegumentary epithelial glands of the third tergite was carried out in virgins and physogastric queens of Scaptotrigona postica Latreille. The glandular tegumentary epithelium was easily discernible in the third tergite of the queens, being much more developed in physogastric than in virgin queens. The ultrastructural differences in the smooth endoplasmic reticulum between the queens, additionally to the histological and morphometrical data, indicate that this epithelium may have functional differences between the queen types. As already known, the virgin queens may produce wax and build brood alveoli, but the role of this epithelium in physog...
The mandibular glands are paired structures localized in the head of the bees, oppenig in the base of the mandibles. The secretory cells of these glands belongs to the class III of Noirot and Quennedey [1]. In Apis mellifera the secretory cells covers all the reservoir and in workers are related with the production of of alarm pheromones and in queens with sexual pheromones, besides other functions.In Melipona bicolor, one of the rare species of bees that presents natural polygyny, the worker´s and the queen's mandibular glands are formed by a group of secretory cells separated of the reservoir, such a cells produce pheromones which seem to have participation in the interactions between workers and queens during the provision and oviposition processes (POP). In Scaptotrigona postica, the gland present a bifid reservoir, being just one of the branch totally covered by secretory cells, being the secretion in workers used as trail pheromone. In queens its function is still unknown. The aim of this investigation is to compare the gland ultrastructure among these three species, whose social organization presents some particularities: A. mellifera only accepts the presence of one queen for colony, be the queen virgin or fecundated; M. bicolor accepts more than one physogastric queen and S. postica accepts virgin queens. The glands of these species were fixed and prepared for transmission electronic microscopic analyses by routine procedures. According to the results, the mandibular glands of all species are constituted by secretory cells of the class III of Noirot and Quennedey [1]. Each cell connects to the reservoir through a canalicule (Fig. 1B,C), which presents a portion surrounded by the secretory cell and, other that, continues extracellularly with other canalicule, which oppenig and realizing the secretion in the reservoir´s lumen. In all these species, the secretion is of lipidic nature, although its composition may vary. In this way, the cytoplasm of the secretory cells has indicatives of its involvement with the lipidic synthesis, as very well developed smooth endoplasmatic reticule (Fig.1A,D), lipidic droplets ( Fig. 1D) and myelinics bodies (Fig. 1B). In M. bicolor, the characteristic feature of the mitocondria (Fig. 1A) suggests that these organelas also may participate in secretion production. The great amount of myelinics bodies in the cytoplasm of the secretory cells may be related with hidrocarbon production.
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