Ultrastructure of the wax gland complex and secretion of beeswax in the worker honey bee Apis mellifera L

Cassier, Pierre; Lensky, Yaacov

doi:10.1051/apido:19950103

Cited by 23 publications

(30 citation statements)

References 15 publications

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“…The activated wax glands of worker bees (Apis mellifera) are larger, they cover an area of roughly 2 000 x 1 200 μm of the 7th to 10th sternites and the overlaying cuticle is perforated (see review of Hepburn, 1986 (Hepburn et al, 1991). For these cells Cassier and Lensky (1995) hypothesized that the few cisternae of the smooth ER, running parallel to the major cell axis, are preferential sites of transit for hydrocarbons biosynthesized by oenocytes. The secretory activity starts only after the drone has emerged from the brood cell.…”

Section: Cornua In Situmentioning

confidence: 99%

Cornual gland of the honeybee drone (Apis mellifera L): structure and secretion

et al. 1996

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Summary — The cornual gland of the drone's endophallus is an epithelial gland, whose cells extend from the tip of the cornual tube, along its lateral parts to the basic hump (dorsal cornua). The gland forms a stripe with a central region of dense and homogeneous secretory cells. To the sides the gland cells become sparse. The secretory cells contain mainly rough endoplasmatic reticulum and numerous mitochondria. The nuclei have several nucleoli and are situated at the apical part. Microvilli border the microfibrillar cuticula into which cell projections often intrude. At the basal membrane the cells are often subtended by a layer of fatty tissue, and oenocytes can also be attached. The secretion in a 3-day-old drone appears either as an orange-coloured layer (deep frozen sections) or as osmiophilic granula (EM) mainly near the lumen of the cornual tube. The cuticula of the cornual tube is untanned and non-sclerotized. Along the lumen of the cornua it is extremely folded and papillated, forming in situ small cavities which contain osmiophilic drops of the secretion, often accumulated in groups. No pores were found, although small granules of secretion occur within the cuticular layers, with the highest concentration near the lumen. During eversion of the cornua the secretion merges on the surface of the cuticula. The cuticula consists of two differently structured layers. Near the lumen of the cornual tube the microfibers extend regular and parallel to the folds; above the gland cells the microfibers are less dense and more irregular.Apis mellifera / drone / sexual organ / endophallus / cornual gland INTRODUCTION

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Section: Cornua In Situmentioning

confidence: 99%

Cornual gland of the honeybee drone (Apis mellifera L): structure and secretion

et al. 1996

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“…Some microorganisms such as Euglena and Acinetobacter accumulate wax esters as energy reserves (Fixter et al 1986;Tucci et al 2010). Honey bees produce comb wax which is used to build hexagonal cells for larvae rearing as well as pollen and honey storage (Cassier and Lensky 1995).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Molecular and Functional Analysis of Three Fatty Acyl-CoA Reductases with Distinct Substrate Specificities in Copepod Calanus finmarchicus

Teerawanichpan

Qiu

2011

Mar Biotechnol

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The marine copepod Calanus finmarchicus constitutes the substantial amount of biomass in the Arctic and Northern seas. It is unique in that this small crustacean accumulates a high level of wax esters as carbon storage which is mainly comprised of 20:1n-9 and 22:1n-11 alcohols (Alc) linked with various kinds of fatty acids, including n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids. The absence of 20:1n-9 Alc and 22:1n-11 Alc in diatoms and dinoflagellates, the primary food sources of copepods, suggests the existence of de novo biosynthesis of fatty alcohols in C.

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“…Beeswax is produced endogenously by specialized organs in adult bees (Blomquist et al, 1980;Cassier and Lensky, 1995;Hepburn et al, 1991), then manipulated in the mandibles where salivary secretions are added (Kurstjens et al, 1985) and finally is placed in in the growing comb structure. Beeswax does experience some aging effects (Fröhlich et al, 2000a), but its composition is relatively stable over time.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The role of fatty acids in the mechanical properties of beeswax

et al. 2009

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-Beeswax is a mixture of many organic compounds, including hydrocarbons, wax esters, and fatty acids. Because fatty acids in beeswax also serve as social signals, we explored the functional significance of the fatty acids. The removal of the fatty acids from beeswax results in diminished yield stress, resilience, stiffness, and proportional limit stress of beeswax samples. Addition of stearic acid to beeswax enhances all of these properties except resilience. Artificial wax mixtures show a positive correlation between the amount of stearic acid in the wax mixture and yield stress. Unsaturated fatty acids found in beeswax behave similarly, with respect to their effects on the mechanical properties of artificial wax mixtures. Fatty acid concentration showed significant variation among colonies, particularly among the unsaturated fatty acids. We interpret these findings with respect to the mechanical properties of beeswax and the role of fatty acids in communication among bees.Apis mellifera / wax / fatty acid / yield stress / stiffness

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Ultrastructure of the wax gland complex and secretion of beeswax in the worker honey bee Apis mellifera L

Cited by 23 publications

References 15 publications

Cornual gland of the honeybee drone (Apis mellifera L): structure and secretion

Cornual gland of the honeybee drone (Apis mellifera L): structure and secretion

Molecular and Functional Analysis of Three Fatty Acyl-CoA Reductases with Distinct Substrate Specificities in Copepod Calanus finmarchicus

The role of fatty acids in the mechanical properties of beeswax

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