Exposure to 9-cis retinoic acid induces penis and vas deferens development in the female rock shell, Thais clavigera

To clarify how tributyltin (TBT) and triphenyltin (TPT) interact with the retinoid X receptor (RXR) to induce growth of male sex organs in female gastropods, we treated female rock shells (Thais clavigera) with three different concentrations (0.1, 1, or 5 μg/g wet wt) of 9-cis-retinoic acid (9CRA) or with a single concentration (1 μg/g wet wt) of TBT, TPT, or fetal bovine serum (as a control). The effects of each treatment were measured as the incidence of imposex, the length of the penis-like structure, and the vas deferens sequence (VDS) index. 9CRA induced imposex in a dose-dependent manner; imposex incidence was significantly higher in the rock shells that received 1 (P < 0.05) or 5 μg (P < 0.001) 9CRA than in the controls. After 1 month, the rock shells treated with 5 μg 9CRA exhibited substantial growth of the penis-like structure that was not as evident in the other treated shells. The length of the structure differed between the 0.1- and 5-μg 9CRA treatment groups (P < 0.05) but not between the 1- and 5-μg 9CRA treatment groups (P > 0.05). Compared with the control, the VDS index increased significantly in the 1- (P < 0.05) and 5-μg (P < 0.001) 9CRA groups. The penis-like structures behind the right tentacle in female rock shells treated with 5 μg 9CRA were essentially the same as the penises and vasa deferentia of normal males and of TBT-treated or TPT-treated imposexed females. These results further support the hypothesis that imposex in gastropods could be mediated by RXR.     

狭胸天牛类雄性外生殖嚣分类研究——附一新种

该文就狭胸天牛类3属6种雄性外生殖器的形态结构,比较研究其系统发育及其归属,并记录太谷芫天牛Mantitheus tazguensts sp. nov.一新种和重新描述细点音天牛的雄性外生殖器。狭胸天牛类属较原始的类群,祖征为中茎突中央加厚,边缘极薄;阳基侧突基部还保留着一条横裂。狭胸天牛属与音天牛属和芫天牛属关系较密切,应为姊妹群,狭胸天牛属较始,其衍征为中茎突较长的分开,内囊具基骨片、骨化细长管和大小较一致骨化微刺。音天牛属和芫天牛属为姊妹群,芫天牛较原始,音天牛较进化,其衍征为阳基侧突背面因基部裂缝消失而完全合并,骨化细长管较细;外部形态表现为触角较短,较圆;中胸发音器中央无缝;而芫天牛内囊基骨片明显易见。     

中国土天牛属雄性外生殖器研究(鞘翅目,天牛科,锯天牛亚科,锯天牛族)

对中国土天牛属13种雄性外生殖器进行了解剖研究,总结了土天牛属的雄性外生殖器特征。在所研究的5个亚属中,仅Dorysthenes(Prionomimus)亚属内各种类具有很多共同的特征,其中包括与其他种不同的雄性外生殖器特征。所研究的13种雄性外生殖器在形态上存在差异,利用交配孔背缘中央是否低于两侧、交配孔腹缘肩部的倾斜程度、阳基侧突的长度和中茎的弯曲程度等雄性外生殖器特征能够很好地对土天牛属的种类进行鉴定,尤其是鉴定外部形态十分相似的种类。     

Towards a phylogeny of the flesh flies (Diptera: Sarcophagidae): morphology and phylogenetic implications of the acrophallus in the subfamily Sarcophaginae

The morphology of the acrophallus, the distal portion of the male phallus carrying the phallotreme, was studied in 72 exemplar species representing 56 genera and subgenera of the flesh fly subfamily Sarcophaginae. For 42 of those species, scanning electron microscopy was used to clarify the phallic morphology. Terms used to describe the male genitalia were updated based on new interpretations of homology. Male genitalic characters, combined with other morphological characters of adult males and females and of larvae, were used to construct a phylogeny. The monophyly of the subfamily was supported, and some generic‐level sister‐group relationships proposed in the literature, but without previous cladistic analyses, were also supported. The genus Blaesoxipha Loew, as currently recognized, was not monophyletic in our analysis. The genus Helicobia Coquillett is synonymized with Sarcophaga Meigen syn. nov. and treated as a subgenus of the latter. The Sarcophaga subgenera Neobellieria Blanchard and Mehria Enderlein were not monophyletic. Many of the clades in the analysis were supported primarily or exclusively by male genitalic character states, highlighting the importance of the male genitalia as a source of morphological characters for sarcophagine phylogeny. © 2010 The Linnean Society of London, Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society, 2010, 158 , 740–778.     

Increased copulation duration before ejaculate transfer is associated with larger spermatophores, and male genital titillators, across bushcricket taxa

Copulation duration varies considerably across species, but few comparative studies have examined factors that might underlie such variation. We examined the relationship between copulation duration (prior to spermatophore transfer), the complexity of titillators (sclerotized male genital contact structures), spermatophore mass and male body mass across 54 species of bushcricket. Using phylogenetic comparative analyses, we found that copulation duration was much longer in species with titillators than those without, but it was not longer in species with complex compared with simple titillators. A positive relationship was found between spermatophore size and copulation duration prior to ejaculate transfer, which supports the hypothesis that this represents a period of mate assessment. The slope of this relationship was steeper in species with simple rather than complex titillators. Although the data suggest that the presence of titillators is necessary to maintain long copulation prior to ejaculate transfer, mechanisms underlying this association remain unclear.     

A phylogenetic investigation of the Neotropical genus Alphamenes van der Vecht, 1977 (Hymenoptera,Vespidae, Eumeninae)

Advances in potter wasp systematics have been achieved recently, with classificatory changes resulting from analyses based upon large scale molecular datasets. For the Neotropics, recent hypotheses point to the occurrence of an exclusive clade recognized within the tribe Eumenini. In this group, several contributions regarding taxonomy and systematics have been proposed in the last five years, including the genus Alphamenes. This taxon contains seven described species whose distribution is exclusively Neotropical. Females are morphologically homogeneous, and characters related to copulatory organs are useful in male diagnosis. This contribution forms the first phylogenetic approach to include all species of Alphamenes, hence the first to strongly test for group monophyly. Our cladistic results recovered Alphamenes as a monophyletic group supported by male genital features. Relationships among included species also rely upon genitalic characters, highlighting the importance of these attributes for eumenine systematics. Recent phylogenetic investigations applied to the Neotropical fauna of potter wasps represent desirable advancements towards a natural classification for the group.     

Directional asymmetry reversal of male copulatory organs in chafer beetles (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae): implications on left–right polarity determination in insect terminalia

During large‐scale examinations of male genitalia for taxonomic studies of Sericini chafers (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae), we have found that reversals of directed left–right (LR) asymmetry in male copulatory organs are compared to other insects not common. However, such inversions do occur occasionally and they must be considered a significant ‘source of error’ in taxonomic studies. Our data indicate asymmetry reversal of male genitalia affects only the abdominal segments (genitalia) as changes in asymmetric structures of the head and thorax were not observed. Based on these observations, we believe that this partial abdominal LR asymmetry reversal of terminalia could be due to a local change in the polarity determining LR patterning in the growth zone of posterior abdominal segments as development of these segments begins.     

楔天牛属7种雄性外生殖器特征比较研究

本文研究了检疫截获的楔天牛属7种楔天牛八点楔天牛、白桦楔天牛、斑点楔天牛、柳楔天牛、青杨楔天牛、山杨楔天牛、十星楔天牛雄性外生殖器的形态结构,并提供其解剖图。研究表明,楔天牛属雄性外生殖器由阳茎基、中茎和内囊3部分组成。阳茎基的阳基侧突具有相对遗传稳定性,且在属内均成近似矩形,并首次测量了7种楔天牛的成虫雄性外生殖器阳基侧突的长宽比。得出了雄性外生殖器形态特征在楔天牛属种内差异小、种间差异大,并能用雄性外生殖器特征有效区分楔天牛属近似种的结论。