Biology & Sustainability
Spermatid Ultrastructure within the Testis of the Softshell Turtle, Apalone mutica
Document Type
Poster Presentation
Location
Indianapolis, IN
Subject Area
Biology & Sustainability
Start Date
11-4-2014 8:30 AM
End Date
11-4-2014 9:30 AM
Sponsor
Kevin Gribbins (Wittenberg University)
Description
Histological data pertaining to spermatogenesis is accumulating in reptiles; however the turtles have largely been ignored as far as the ultrastructure of sperm development. The following study is only the third complete study of spermiogenesis in a turtle species. Apalone mutica were collected during the months of June, July, and September 2007. The reproductive tracts were removed, fixed in Trumps, and then the testes were processed for transmission electron microscopy. Spermiogenesis within the testes of A. mutica appears very similar to that of the Chinese Soft-shelled turtle, Pelodiscus sinensis. This suggests that chelonian spermatozoa and the process of sperm development may be highly conserved in turtles. A. mutica have deeply embedded intranuclear tubules that appear to form from the subacrosome granule, which are also observed in crocodilians, the Tuatara, and other turtles. Unlike turtles, squamates' extranuclear perforatoria are found within the subacrosomal spaces of elongating spermatids. Furthermore many spermiogenic characters of A. mutica are shared among most of the other non-squamate reptiles and include the extensive acrosome complex, granular condensation of chromatin, cytoplasmic droplet loss caudally, and concentric layers of cristae within the mitochondria. All of these shared characteristics of A. mutica and other turtles suggest common morphological and possibly phylogenetic kinship within non-squamate reptiles. However, caution must be maintained until more genera of turtles and other reptilian taxa are studied for spermiogenic characters to ensure trends seen currently within the literature also appear within other turtles and non-squamate reptiles.
Spermatid Ultrastructure within the Testis of the Softshell Turtle, Apalone mutica
Indianapolis, IN
Histological data pertaining to spermatogenesis is accumulating in reptiles; however the turtles have largely been ignored as far as the ultrastructure of sperm development. The following study is only the third complete study of spermiogenesis in a turtle species. Apalone mutica were collected during the months of June, July, and September 2007. The reproductive tracts were removed, fixed in Trumps, and then the testes were processed for transmission electron microscopy. Spermiogenesis within the testes of A. mutica appears very similar to that of the Chinese Soft-shelled turtle, Pelodiscus sinensis. This suggests that chelonian spermatozoa and the process of sperm development may be highly conserved in turtles. A. mutica have deeply embedded intranuclear tubules that appear to form from the subacrosome granule, which are also observed in crocodilians, the Tuatara, and other turtles. Unlike turtles, squamates' extranuclear perforatoria are found within the subacrosomal spaces of elongating spermatids. Furthermore many spermiogenic characters of A. mutica are shared among most of the other non-squamate reptiles and include the extensive acrosome complex, granular condensation of chromatin, cytoplasmic droplet loss caudally, and concentric layers of cristae within the mitochondria. All of these shared characteristics of A. mutica and other turtles suggest common morphological and possibly phylogenetic kinship within non-squamate reptiles. However, caution must be maintained until more genera of turtles and other reptilian taxa are studied for spermiogenic characters to ensure trends seen currently within the literature also appear within other turtles and non-squamate reptiles.