Spermiophagy in the Spermatheca of <i>Melipona bicolor</i> Lepeletier, 1836 (Hymenoptera, Apidae, Meliponini)

Cruz-Landim, Carminda da

doi:10.1046/j.1439-0264.2002.00413.x

Cited by 6 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 6 publications

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“…By eliminating dead or dying cells in the spermatheca, queens would thus ensure that optimal conditions are maintained for the live sperm that remains in storage. Consistently, stingless bee queens seem capable of digesting sperm cells in their spermathecal membrane [45]. If these sperm cells are dead, as suggested by our results, this indicates that Hymenoptera queens are able to 'clean' their spermatheca from useless sperm, a hypothesis that certainly deserves further investigation.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 85%

Impact of immune activation on stored sperm viability in ant queens

Chérasse

Aron

2018

Proc. R. Soc. B.

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Ant queens mate on a single occasion early in life and store millions of sperm cells in their spermatheca. By carefully using stored sperm to fertilize eggs, they can produce large colonies of thousands of individuals. Queens can live for decades and their lifetime reproductive success is dependent on their ability to keep stored sperm alive. Maintaining high sperm viability requires metabolic energy which could trade-off with other costly processes such as immunity. We tested the impact of immune activation on the survival of stored sperm by prompting Lasius niger ant queens to mount a melanization response and subsequently measuring sperm viability in their spermatheca. Since queens face different challenges that influence energy allocation depending on the life stage of their colony, we measured sperm viability after immune activation in both newly mated queens (incipient) and in queens 1 year after mating (established). We found that immune activation reduced sperm viability in established queens but not in incipient queens, showing that the cost of immunity on sperm preservation depends on the life stage. Unexpectedly, established queens had significantly higher sperm viability in their spermatheca compared to incipient queens suggesting that ant queens are able to remove dead sperm from their spermatheca.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 85%

Impact of immune activation on stored sperm viability in ant queens

Chérasse

Aron

2018

Proc. R. Soc. B.

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“…A lysis activity involving both epithelium and cuticular intima is already known in the genital tracts of other insects: in the spermatheca of the Apidae Melipona bicolor; indeed, this activity has been related to a spermiophagic function performed by some cells of the organ wall (Da Cruz-Landim 2002). A lysis activity of the epithelium which involves the cuticular intima has also been described in Isopoda Oniscidea: in the oviduct of Porcellio laevis, indeed, the epithelium and the cuticular intima undergo lysis phenomena due to a secretory activity of the oviduct glands; this lysis activity facilitates egg release from the ovary and sperm entrance into the seminal receptacle (De Luca et al 1987;Longo et al 1998).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Morphological and ultrastructural organization of the spermatheca of some Tettigoniidae (Insecta, Orthoptera)

Brundo

Longo

Sottile

et al. 2011

Italian Journal of Zoology

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A morphological and ultrastructural study of the spermatheca of some species of Orthoptera Tettigoniidae was carried out to understand the role of this female organ in the reproductive biology because no literature exists about it in this insect group. In all the examined species, the spermatheca is of ectodermal origin and is composed of a seminal receptacle, mainly involved in the collection and storage of the spermatozoa, and of a spermathecal duct. In both these organs, the epithelium of the wall is made up of two different cell types: cuticle-forming cells, underlying the cuticular intima, and gland cells. Both of these cell types have secretory features that differ among the species and also within the same species, in relation to the tracts examined. In particular, the ultrastructure of the distal tract of the spermathecal duct indicates a more marked secretory activity than in the other tracts of the duct. This activity is often accompanied by ultrastructural aspects, suggesting a lysis activity in both the epithelium and the upper cuticle. Based on these findings, it is hypothesized that the seminal receptacle and the spermathecal duct have different functional roles, despite having a similar general structural organization.

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“…This result was surprising because, due to ROS accumulation, stored sperm should experience oxidative stress, a phenomenon to which they are particularly sensitive; indeed, sperm ageing is normally correlated with greater DNA fragmentation (Comar et al, 2017;Reinhardt, 2007). A plausible hypothesis is an elimination of sperm with highly fragmentated DNA through phagocytosis, as has been seen in the reproductive tissues of both sexes in squamates (Nogueira et al, 2011), birds (Chiba et al, 2011), mammals (Ball et al, 1984;Bernard, 1984) and the honey bee (Da Cruz-Landim, 2002). Over time, phagocytosis should then gradually decrease the number of spermatozoa in the accessory testes, a pattern that we did not observe.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Age‐related changes in male ant sperm quality

Degueldre

Aron

2023

Journal of Zoology

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Sperm cells age during storage in the male reproductive organs, which can lead ejaculate quality to decline dramatically over time. Such may pose a particular concern in species with constrained sperm supplies, where adult males cannot replenish their sperm reserves. In eusocial hymenopterans (i.e. ants, bees and wasps with permanent castes), males typically reach adulthood with a limited quantity of sperm, and their testes deteriorate shortly thereafter. In adult life, both sexes mate during a single reproductive event. While males die quickly after copulation, they persist posthumously via sperm stored in their mates' spermatheca, sometimes for decades. As a result of this mating system, males should experience intense selection pressure to produce and transfer high‐quality sperm. Using the black garden ant (Lasius niger) as a model system, we investigated whether the duration of storage in the accessory testes before copulation affected sperm quality. We found that there was no impact of male age on sperm number or viability and that sperm DNA fragmentation decreased rather that increased with age. These results highlight the extent to which male ants, and possibly other taxa with constrained sperm supplies, have evolved extremely specialized strategies to ensure reproductive performance.

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Spermiophagy in the Spermatheca of Melipona bicolor Lepeletier, 1836 (Hymenoptera, Apidae, Meliponini)

Cited by 6 publications

References 6 publications

Impact of immune activation on stored sperm viability in ant queens

Impact of immune activation on stored sperm viability in ant queens

Morphological and ultrastructural organization of the spermatheca of some Tettigoniidae (Insecta, Orthoptera)

Age‐related changes in male ant sperm quality

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