Corrosion casts as a method for investigation of the insect tracheal system

1989 ◽  
Vol 256 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
EricP. Meyer
Keyword(s):  
Corrosion Casts ◽  
Tracheal System

Microvascular features that suggest effectors of blood-flow regulation in the brain: Evidence by SEM of corrosion casts of intracerebral vessels

1990 ◽  
Vol 48 (3) ◽  
pp. 274-275
Author(s):  
Enrico D.F. Motti ◽  
Hans-Georg Imhof ◽  
Gazi M. Yasargil
Keyword(s):  
Blood Flow ◽  
Perfusion Pressure ◽  
Corrosion Casts ◽  
Cerebral Microcirculation ◽  
Pial Arteries ◽  
Random Occurrence ◽  
Brain Arteries ◽  
Homogeneous Network ◽  
The Brain

Physiologists have devoted most attention in the cerebrovascular tree to the arterial side of the circulation which has been subdivided in three levels: 1) major brain arteries which keep microcirculation constant despite changes in perfusion pressure; 2) pial arteries supposed to be effectors regulating microcirculation; 3) intracerebral arteries supposed to be deprived of active cerebral blood flow regulating devices.The morphological search for microvascular effectors in the cerebrovascular bed has been elusive. The opaque substance of the brain confines in vivo investigation to the superficial pial arteries. Most morphologists had to limit their observation to the random occurrence of a favorable site in the practically two-dimensional thickness of diaphanized histological sections. It is then not surprising most investigators of the cerebral microcirculation refer to an homogeneous network of microvessels interposed between arterioles and venules.We have taken advantage of the excellent depth of focus afforded by the scanning electron microscope (SEM) to investigate corrosion casts obtained injecting a range of experimental animals with a modified Batson's acrylic mixture.

The Occurrence of Mites in the Tracheal System of Certain Orthoptera

1925 ◽  
Vol 18 (1) ◽  
pp. 35-44 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lawrence Paul Wehrle ◽  
Paul S. Welch
Keyword(s):  
Tracheal System

Longitudinal extension of the pulmonary trunk during breathing in young rabbits: a possible factor in elastin fragmentation

1976 ◽  
Vol 54 (2) ◽  
pp. 113-117
Author(s):  
Paul H. Smith
Keyword(s):  
Pulmonary Arteries ◽  
Pulmonary Trunk ◽  
Corrosion Casts ◽  
Longitudinal Stress ◽  
Longitudinal Extension ◽  
Silicone Polymer

Corrosion casts of the pulmonary trunk and major branches of the pulmonary arteries of 39 rabbits were made from a silicone polymer. In half of the rabbits the casts were made with the lungs expanded and half with the lungs collapsed. The length of various segments of the casts were measured from magnified photographs. It was found that in rabbits less than 23 days old the pulmonary trunk is significantly longer when the lungs are expanded than when they are collapsed. This suggests that a repeated longitudinal extension of the vessel occurs during breathing. This effect disappears after 30 days of age, possibly because of elastin fragmentation. Between the ages of 23 and 30 days the growth in length and diameter of the pulmonary trunk undergoes a rapid acceleration. This may also be the result of elastin fragmentation. Whereas it may be that repeated longitudinal stress in the pulmonary trunk during breathing causes elastin in its media to fragment, one cannot exclude the possibility that other factors such as growth are responsible.

Pressure cycles and the water economy of insects

1988 ◽  
Vol 318 (1190) ◽  
pp. 377-407 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Body Temperature ◽  
Water Exchange ◽  
Vapour Phase ◽  
The Body ◽  
Tracheal System ◽  
Water Economy ◽  
Insect Wings ◽  
Pressure Cycle ◽  
Respiratory Gases

Water exchange between insects and their environment via the vapour phase includes influx and efflux components. The pressure cycle theory postulates that insects (and some other arthropods) can regulate the relative rates of influx and efflux of water vapour by modulating hydrostatic pressures at a vapour-liquid interface by compressing or expanding a sealed, gas-filled cavity. Some such cavities, like the tracheal system, could be compressed by elevated pressure in all or part of the haemocoele. Others, perhaps including the muscular rectum of flea prepupae, could be compressed by intrinsic muscles. Maddrell Insect Physiol . 8, 199 (1971)) suggested a pressure cycle mechanism of this kind to account for rectal uptake of water vapour in Thermobia but did not find it compatible with quantitative information then available. Newer evidence conforms better with the proposed mechanism. Cyclical pressure changes are of widespread occurrence in insects and have sometimes been shown to depend on water status. Evidence is reviewed for the role of the tracheal system as an avenue for net exchange of water between the insect and its environment. Because water and respiratory gases share common pathways, most published findings fail to distinguish between the conventional view that the tracheal system has evolved as a site for distribution and exchange of respiratory gases and that any water exchange occurring in it is generally incidental and nonadaptive, and the theory proposed here. The pressure cycle theory offers a supplementary explanation not incompatible with evidence so far available. The relative importance of water economy and respiratory exchange in the functioning of compressible cavities such as the tracheal system remains to be explored. Some further implications of the pressure cycle theory are discussed. Consideration is given to the possible involvement of vapour-phase transport in the internal redistribution of water within the body. It is suggested that some insect wings may constitute internal vapour-liquid exchange sites, where water can move from the body fluids to the intratracheal gas. Ambient and body temperature must influence rates of vapour-liquid mass transfer. If elevated body temperature promotes evaporative discharge of the metabolic water burden that has been shown to accumulate during flight in some large insects, their minimum threshold thoracic temperature for sustained flight may relate to the maintenance of water balance. The role of water economy in the early evolution of insect wings is considered. Pressure cycles might help to maintain water balance in surface-breathing insects living in fresh and saline waters, but the turbulence of the surface of the open sea might prevent truly marine forms from using this mechanism.

Diffusion In Insect Wing Muscle, The Most Active Tissue Known

1964 ◽  
Vol 41 (2) ◽  
pp. 229-256 ◽  
Author(s):  
TORKEL WEIS-FOGH
Keyword(s):  
Liquid Phase ◽  
Safety Factor ◽  
Metabolic Rates ◽  
High Concentration ◽  
Tracheal System ◽  
Insect Wing ◽  
Main Site ◽  
Normal Diffusion ◽  
Large Fibre ◽  
Very High

1. The tracheal system of insect wing muscle is so dense that between 10-1 and 10-3 of any cut area is occupied by air tubes. In most cases, air tube diffusion of O2 and CO2 through the muscle is therefore several thousand times quicker than diffusion in the liquid phase. 2. In large insects the primary tracheal supply must be strongly ventilated while diffusion is sufficient in the remaining part of the air tubes, even at the highest metabolic rates encountered in any insect. 3. The tracheoles represent the main site of exchange between the gaseous and the liquid phase while the tracheae are of little significance in this respect. The fibres cannot exceed about 20 µ in diameter unless the tracheoles indent the surface and become ‘internal’. 4. Muscular pumping of air and blood due to shortening is of little importance for the exchange of gases but of major importance for the supply with fuel for combustion. However, the large fibre diameters and the tidal nature of the pumping necessitates a very high concentration of fuel in the haemolymph. The high concentration of trehalose in insect blood is considered to be an essential adaptation to flapping flight. 5. The transport by diffusion of O2 and CO2 was followed in detail in a number of concrete examples in the gaseous as well as in the liquid phase. Within a safety factor of 2-3, the rate of transport was always found to be adequate. There is no reason to suggest other mechanisms than a simple, normal diffusion.

ribbon encodes a novel BTB/POZ protein required for directed cell migration in Drosophila melanogaster

Development ◽  
2001 ◽  
Vol 128 (15) ◽  
pp. 3001-3015 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pamela L. Bradley ◽  
Deborah J. Andrew
Keyword(s):  
Cell Migration ◽  
Wnt Signaling ◽  
Signaling Pathways ◽  
Egf Receptor ◽  
Tracheal System ◽  
Directed Cell Migration ◽  
Posterior Migration ◽  
And Function ◽  
Dorsal Epidermis ◽  
Anterior Posterior

During development, directed cell migration is crucial for achieving proper shape and function of organs. One well-studied example is the embryonic development of the larval tracheal system of Drosophila, in which at least four signaling pathways coordinate cell migration to form an elaborate branched network essential for oxygen delivery throughout the larva. FGF signaling is required for guided migration of all tracheal branches, whereas the DPP, EGF receptor, and Wingless/WNT signaling pathways each mediate the formation of specific subsets of branches. Here, we characterize ribbon, which encodes a BTB/POZ-containing protein required for specific tracheal branch migration. In ribbon mutant tracheae, the dorsal trunk fails to form, and ventral branches are stunted; however, directed migrations of the dorsal and visceral branches are largely unaffected. The dorsal trunk also fails to form when FGF or Wingless/WNT signaling is lost, and we show that ribbon functions downstream of, or parallel to, these pathways to promote anterior-posterior migration. Directed cell migration of the salivary gland and dorsal epidermis are also affected in ribbon mutants, suggesting that conserved mechanisms may be employed to orient cell migrations in multiple tissues during development.

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