Comparative morphology of the reproductive system of seven species of ostariophysan fishes from the upper Das Velhas River, Brazil

Abstract

The success of fishes in different environments is related with the variation of reproductive strategies developed by the systematic group, which is reflected in the morphology of the reproductive system and can have ecological and evolutionary implications. This study comparatively analyzed the morphological characteristics of the male and female reproductive systems of ostariophysan fish species from the upper Das Velhas River in the São Francisco River basin, Brazil. In order to accomplish this, 393 specimens belonging to seven fish species were sampled between April 2010 and June 2015 for histological, ultrastructural, histochemical, and morphometric analyses. All the species examined have anastomosing tubular testes with unrestricted distribution of spermatogonia. Astyanax bimaculatus, A. fasciatus, A. scabripinnis, and Harttia torrenticola had their spermatozoa embedded in a glycoprotein secretion within the tubule lumen. Most species had type I spermiogenesis, whereas Rhamdia quelen had type III spermiogenesis. While all females examined had asynchronous oocyte development, there were remarkable morphological, histochemical, and morphometric differences in the ovarian follicles and enveloping layers. Hoplias malabaricus and H. torrenticola, which exhibit parental care behaviour, had a significantly larger diameter of vitellogenic oocytes and larger spermatozoa nuclei. Apareiodon ibitiensis, H. torrenticola, and A. scabripinnis, species that have rheophilic preferences, exhibited a thicker zona radiata than the other species examined. The follicular cells of R. quelen and H. torrenticola were columnar and produced a jelly coat and mucosubstances, respectively. The females of the seven fish species studied show a correlation of the reproductive strategies with the reproductive system morphology, while males retained more similar morphological characteristics between species. J. Morphol. 278:170-181, 2017. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals,Inc.

Oocyte growth, follicular complex formation and extracellular-matrix remodeling in ovarian maturation of the imperial zebra pleco fish Hypancistrus zebra

“…zebra begins in the stage I oocyte with the presence of the basal membrane and follicular cells, similarly to the sequence in Sciaenops ocellatus 9 . The subdivision of the Zr (Zr1, Zr2 and Zr3) agrees with the findings of some studies 9 , 34 but differs from another 19 that reported only two layers for the zona radiata. In H .…”

“…Yolk globules and cortical alveoli appear and increase in stage III and IV oocytes. Five species of ostariophysan fishes show a similar sequence 19 , suggesting that these morphological characteristics are conserved in teleost species.…”

“…Rhinelepis aspera 17 , Neoplecostomus microps 18 and Harttia torrenticola 19 . Generally, the presence of larger but fewer oocytes is related to the mode of reproduction and parental care of the species, which suggests a higher survival rate of the brood 19 , 20 .…”

Ultraestrutura e criopreservação de sêmen de jundiá amazônico (Leiarius marmoratus) em cativeiro

“…Foi observada também a ausência da fossa nuclear e de canais citoplasmáticos, que são características singulares dos siluriformes pimelídeos, decorrentes da espermiogênese tipo III, observada nessa família de peixes. Nesse tipo de espermiogênese, o núcleo não sofre rotação e o eixo da cauda se mantém central em relação ao núcleo, não sendo formados os canais citoplasmáticos e a fossa nuclear (Quagio-Grassiotto e Oliveira, 2008;Melo et al, 2017). A peça intermediária apresentou formato cônico, com comprimento de 0,93μm, envolvendo a base da cabeça, com várias vesículas, e a presença de duas a quatro mitocôndrias dispostas em forma de anel, sendo o formato e a descrição compatíveis com os achados em peixes siluriformes (Quagio-Grassiotto e Oliveira, 2008; Melo et al, 2017).…”

“…Nesse tipo de espermiogênese, o núcleo não sofre rotação e o eixo da cauda se mantém central em relação ao núcleo, não sendo formados os canais citoplasmáticos e a fossa nuclear (Quagio-Grassiotto e Oliveira, 2008;Melo et al, 2017). A peça intermediária apresentou formato cônico, com comprimento de 0,93μm, envolvendo a base da cabeça, com várias vesículas, e a presença de duas a quatro mitocôndrias dispostas em forma de anel, sendo o formato e a descrição compatíveis com os achados em peixes siluriformes (Quagio-Grassiotto e Oliveira, 2008; Melo et al, 2017). Em peixes caraciformes, geralmente a peça intermediária é maior (3,41 a 1,61μm), sem a presença de vesículas, com número variável de mitocôndrias, sendo mais longa e de formato cilíndrico (Viveiros et al, 2012;Murgas et al, 2017).…”