Barbels of the Larval and Adult African Catfish (Clarias gariepinus): Light, Scanning and Transmis- sion Electron Microscopy Investigation | ||||
| Journal of Veterinary Anatomy | ||||
| Article 3, Volume 10, Issue 1, 2017, Page 17-36 | ||||
| Document Type: Original Article | ||||
| DOI: 10.21608/jva.2017.37154 | ||||
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| Authors | ||||
| S. A.A. El-Gendy1; Amira Derbalah* 2; Ramy, M. Shourbela3 | ||||
| 1Department of Anatomy and Embryology,Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Alexandria University, Edfina, El Behera, Egypt | ||||
| 2Department of Histology. Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Alexandria University, Edfina, El Behera, Egypt | ||||
| 3Dept. of Animal Husbandry and Animal Wealth Development, (Fish breeding and production), Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Alexandria University, Edfina, El Behera, Egypt | ||||
| Abstract | ||||
| Abstract The present study describes the struc- ture of the barbels in larval and adult African catfish. The African catfish has four pairs of barbels. The two types of barbels appear in first-day larvae, without taste buds. The barbels of the third-day larvae had slight folding and their taste buds had few microvilli. In the fifth-day larvae, the taste buds were concave and their microvilli were condensed at the periphery and loose- ly arranged centrally. Taste buds of the seventh-day larvae appeared as volcano-like elevations with alternative arrangement. In the thirteenth-day larvae, taste buds were placed on the epidermal papillae and they pos- sessed large and small microvilli. The adult catfish barbels consisted of an epidermis, dermis and a central rod of cartilage. The flask-shaped taste buds were scattered among the epidermal cells. By SEM, the epithelial surface appeared as circular whirlpools, the center of each whirlpool was a Mulber- ry-form taste bud. By TEM, the taste buds consisted of light, dark and basal cells. Interdigitations between light and dark cells and unmyelinated nerve fi- bers were found in between basal and light cells. Light cells had membrane- bound vesicles. Basal cells had a ruf- fled appearance and unmyelinated nerve fibers were noticed among the basal cells. Synapse-like structures were seen in the basal region of the taste buds; due to convergence of these structures we suggest that the dark, light, basal cells and unmylinated nerve fibers act as a modifier in the transmission of taste information from receptor to central nervous system in the dark. | ||||
| Keywords | ||||
| Ultrastructure; SEM; Barbels; African catfish | ||||
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