Applied Entomology and Zoology
Online ISSN : 1347-605X
Print ISSN : 0003-6862
ISSN-L : 0003-6862
Histological Studies of Cordyceps myrmecophila (CES) Infection in the Ant Palthothyreus tarsatus FAB. (Formicidae : Ponerinae)
E.S. NNAKUMUSANA
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1987 Volume 22 Issue 1 Pages 1-6

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Abstract
Many moribund and dead Palthothyreus tarsatus FAB. and Camponotus spp. infected with Cordyceps myrmecophila (CES) were collected from Kibale and Zika forests (5 km outside of Entebbe in Uganda), and fixed for histological studies. These studies revealed that the fungus colonized in tissues of the head and thorax only. It invaded the tissue just behind the eye, attacked the brain, and the fat body was completely destroyed. The host cells in contact with the invading hyphae were quite completely destroyed and the surrounding tissues of the host were in a state of disorganization. The thoracic muscles and skeletal muscles were heavily invaded. The haemocoel between the cuticle and skeletal muscle was invaded by the vegatative hyphae. The mesentron was also attacked by the vegetative hyphae. There were major cellular losses due to a strong enzymatic activity. A variation in size of oblique perithecia was noted.
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© the Japanese Society of Applied Entomology and Zoology
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