The Fine Structure of the Cinctum of Ellobiophrya conviva (Ciliophora: Peritricha)

Abstract

Ellobiophrya conviva clasps tentacles of the bryozoan Bugula neritina with a ring-like structure formed from aboral extensions of its body that taper into two slender arms. The tips of the arms overlap and join to form a unique organelle, the bouton. Each arm contains a massive myoneme that splays out at the bouton. The bouton consists of the cupped tips of the arms and a cavity, which is filled with dense homogeneous material. Long digitations containing longitudinal microtubules at their periphery project from the inner surface of the tip of each arm into the cavity. Deep folds of pellicle with pores opening into their depths line the wall of the cavity. Conventional kinetosomes are not visible in the bouton, but circular or elliptical arrays of microtubules are found at the bases of digitations. The nonfunctional scopula of the adult is in a depression enclosed by pellicular folds. The bouton is distant from the scopula, but its fine structure somewhat resembles it, supporting Chatton and Lwoff's hypothesis that the cinctal arms carry parts of the scopula at their tips. The fine structure of the cinctum supports their suggestion that the cinctal arms are homologous to the spasmonemes of vorticellid peritrichs.

Redescription of Ellobiophrya brevipes (Laird, 1959) N. Comb. (Ciliophora, Peritrichia) and the Fine Structure of its Pellicle and Cinctum

“…Electron microscopy confirms that the structure described as an endoskeletal rod by Laird [8] is really a dense myoneme that fills %-41 of the volume of the cinctal arms ( Fig. 16, 18) just as it does in E. conviva [2]. Embedded in the myoneme are the same endoplasmic reticulum (ER) and linkage complexes as are found in the myonemes of E. conviva and other peritrichs [I, 21; however, E. brevipes has noticeably more ER cisternae within its cinctal rnyonerne, a dozen or more cisternae in most cross-sections ( Fig.…”

“…By electron microscopy, a stria is the junction between adjacent sows of alveoli underlain by a prominent, electron-dense fiber. Like those of E. conviva [ 2 ] , the pellicular alveoli of E. brevipes are flattened (Fig. 19, 20).…”

“…comb., augmenting Laird's [S] description with details of the buccal infraciliature and life cycle. In addition, the fine structure of its bouton and pellicle will be compared to those of E. conviva.conviva [2].…”

“…In addition, the fine structure of its bouton and pellicle will be compared to those of E. conviva. conviva [2].…”

“…19, 20). The conspicuous pellicular spheres that lie in a staggered double row on the crest of each stria in E. conviva [2] (Fig. 19) are completely lacking in E. brevipes (Fig.…”