In phytophagous sap-sucking insects, the precibarial valve plays an important role in sap ingestion. We used light and electron microspcopy to study the morphology and the ultrastructure of the precibarial valve of the meadow spittlebug, Philaenus spumarius (Hemiptera, Aphrophoridae), in order to better understand the operative mechanism of this structure. The precibarial valve revealed to be a complex structure with a bell-like invagination in the middle of the precibarium (on the epipharynx). Unlike the current hypothesis, we propose that the valve opens by dilator muscles and closes through cuticular and fluid tensions, the latter leading to morphological changes to the plane of the valve based on sap flow. Moreover, the presence of a precibarial secretory structure is described for the first time for auchenorrhynchan insects. In light of these observations, functions are hypothesized and discussed for this secretory structure. Introduction
Functional anatomy of the precibarial valve in Philaenus spumarius (L.) / Ruschioni, Sara; Ranier, Emanuele; Riolo, Paola; Romani, Roberto; Almeida, Rodrigo P. P.; Isidoro, Nunzio. - In: PLOS ONE. - ISSN 1932-6203. - ELETTRONICO. - 14:2(2019), p. e0213318. [10.1371/journal.pone.0213318]
Functional anatomy of the precibarial valve in Philaenus spumarius (L.)
Ruschioni, Sara;Riolo, Paola;Romani, Roberto;Isidoro, Nunzio
2019-01-01
Abstract
In phytophagous sap-sucking insects, the precibarial valve plays an important role in sap ingestion. We used light and electron microspcopy to study the morphology and the ultrastructure of the precibarial valve of the meadow spittlebug, Philaenus spumarius (Hemiptera, Aphrophoridae), in order to better understand the operative mechanism of this structure. The precibarial valve revealed to be a complex structure with a bell-like invagination in the middle of the precibarium (on the epipharynx). Unlike the current hypothesis, we propose that the valve opens by dilator muscles and closes through cuticular and fluid tensions, the latter leading to morphological changes to the plane of the valve based on sap flow. Moreover, the presence of a precibarial secretory structure is described for the first time for auchenorrhynchan insects. In light of these observations, functions are hypothesized and discussed for this secretory structure. IntroductionI documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.