Histological Description of Gonadal Development of Females and Males ofCallinectes sapidusRathbun, 1896 (Decapoda: Portunidae)

Abstract

This paper describes the characteristics of male and female germ cells during gonadal development and the gonadal maturity scale of the blue crab, Callinectes sapidus. A total of 20 specimens were collected monthly from June to November 2012, in two areas off the coast of the Gulf of Mexico: the San Andrés Lagoon and Alvarado Lagoon. The gonads were removed and processed following the standard technique of hematoxylin and eosin staining. An important event in oogenesis (pre-vitellogenesis) was the appearance of a perinuclear vesicle in the cytoplasm and the accumulation of yolk granules. Later, vitellogenesis began and there was an accumulation of nutritive droplets and fragmentation of the perinuclear vesicle. During spermatogenesis, the accumulation of two fluids was observed that were involved in the formation of the spermatophore and the delay of spermiogenesis. Based on the histological features of gonad maturity, five stages were described (inactive, early gametogenesis, development, maturity, and resorption), in females and males. This proposal can be useful for the study of reproductive seasonality of this species.

Morphometric, Histochemical, and Ultrastructural Analysis of the Reproductive System and Spermatogenic Stages of Male Blue Crab (Callinectessapidus Rathbun, 1896)

“…The male reproductive system of the Callinectes sapidus showed two divisions: the testis and the vas deferens similar to what was reported in the same species by Johnson [27], and in other crab species such as Callinectes ornatus [44] and Callinectes danae [39]. The testes were lobular with highly compacted seminiferous tubules.…”

“…In this study, we observed that the anterior vas deferens (AVD) was divided into two distinct portions: proximal epithelium and distal epithelium, usually labeled as AVDp and AVDd, respectively. These portions have also been reported in several other studies in C. sapidus [16], in C. ornatus [44], and the majid M. brachydactyla [22]. According to [1], the secretions of the AVD are involved in spermatophore formation, with substance I secreted by the AVDp separating the sperm mass into small clumps.…”

“…The spermatophore wall of C. sapidus was formed as a single acellular layer in the current study as observed in other crab species [53]. When the spermatophores are fixed and processed for electron microscopy, sectioning the materials is not difficult as it is in L. emarginata and Ovalipes ocellatus [44,51]. However, the spermatophore wall in Geryon spp.…”

“…The variations existing in the storage of spermatophores among different crab species could be attributed to morphological convergence [16]. The musculature in the AVD and MVD may be linked to spermatophore formation and movement since muscular contractions may separate the sperm mass [44]. Sperm transfer in Callinectes danae occurs during mating through muscular contraction, as defined by other Brachyura [59,60].…”

Reproductive Cycle and Size at First Maturity in Females of Brown Crab Callinectes Bellicosus (Stimpson 1859) in the Southwestern Gulf of California, Mexico

“…The slides were examined with the program for image analysis Image-Pro® 7.0 for Window®, with which the photographs (Digital camera Nikon® 5MDLS) were obtained and the smaller and larger diameter of the gametes (n=30 per development stage) were estimated in an ocular micrometer of a light field optical microscope Nikon® Opti-phot (Carvalho-Saucedo et al, 2015;Castañeda-Fernández de Lara et al, 2015).…”