Olfactory dendrites of the silkmoth antheraea polyphemus cramer (Lepidoptera : Saturniidae) : immunofluorescent staining of cytoskeletal proteins and transmission electron microscopy

Abstract

In this paper we show the presence of major cytoskeletal proteins : tubulin, globular actin, and intermediate filament-like protein, 2 motor proteins : kinesin and unconventional myosin, and fodrin, in the olfactory dendrites of the silkmoth Antheraea polyphemus (Cramer) (Lepidoptera : Saturniidae) by means of immunofluorescence microscopy. We also show cross-bridges between the membrane and the microtubules and between the microtubules themselves, as well as particle-like structures close to the microtubules, by means of transmission electron microscopy. Within the long and thin dendrites, the cytoskeletal proteins provide structural support to the membrane, and, together with the motor proteins, are most probably involved in transport, motility and olfactory transduction.