The exoskeleton or cuticle of arthropods is an important feature that contributes to their great success in colonising numerous habitats on earth. It has numerous functions among which to provide protection against parasites. Whereas often regarded as a simple physical barrier to the outside world, the immune protection of the cuticle is slightly more complex than that. Here, we provide an over...

The ultrastructure of cuticle formation and the effect of actinomycin-D on cuticle formation were examined in the second molt of Nippostrongylus brasiliensis. At the end of the first molt t he rough endoplasmic reticulum of the hypodermis (epidermis) had narrow cisternae. As cuticle formation began the RER cisternae dilated and accumulated a fibrous material. These large fibrous material-contai...

Structure and conductance of eggshells of Adelie Penguins, Pygoscelis adeliae, were studied to address the question: How is the eggshell adapted to cope with the extreme aridity of the Antarctic, and in particular, what is the significance and function of the organic cuticle on the eggshell? Adelie Penguin shell structure has a basic avian pattern with relatively straight, unbranched pores that...

Arthropod growth requires molt-associated changes in softness and stiffness of the cuticle that protects from desiccation, infection and injury. Cuticle hardening in insects depends on the blood-borne hormone, bursicon (Burs), although it has never been determined in hemolymph. Whilst also having Burs, decapod crustaceans reiterate molting many more times during their longer life span and are e...

Bottom-up modeling of lobster cuticle explains architecture and function ab initio, from first principles, starting with synthesis of component polymers and progressively building composite structure which should explain observed properties. A top-down perspective decomposes the lobster cuticle starting at the top level of structural complexity and function aiming to descend to the finest detai...

The ultrastructure of the body wall cuticle in Acrobeles complexus, Cervidellus alutus, and Zeldia punctata was studied as a step toward understanding biological diversity within Cephalobinae, and to discover new characters for phylogeny-based classification of the suborder. In each species the cuticle consists of cortical, median, and basal layers. The cortical layer includes an external trila...

Transmission Mueller-matrix spectroscopic ellipsometry is applied to the cuticle of the beetle Cetonia aurata in the spectral range 300-1000 nm. The cuticle is optically reciprocal and exhibits circular Bragg filter features for green light. By using differential decomposition of the Mueller matrix, the circular and linear birefringence as well as dichroism of the beetle cuticle are quantified....

The hindgut and foregut in terrestrial isopod crustaceans are ectodermal parts of the digestive system and are lined by cuticle, an apical extracellular matrix secreted by epithelial cells. Morphogenesis of the digestive system was reported in previous studies, but differentiation of the gut cuticle was not followed in detail. This study is focused on ultrastructural analyses of hindgut apical ...