Peripherally and centrally generated action potentials in neurons with both a motor and a neurosecretory function in the insectRhodnius prolixus

Nervous system of Triatoma infestans

The anatomy of the adult nervous system of the haematophagous bug Triatoma infestans has been studied by means of dissections and histology. The central nervous system comprises three nervous masses: the brain+suboesophageal ganglion, the prothoracic ganglion, and the posterior fused ganglion (meso+metathoracic+abdominal ganglia). The form of the brain is determined by the tubular head and the highly developed muscles of the pharyngeal pump. The prothoracic ganglion is located near the posternum, the posterior ganglionic mass near the mesosternum. A significative variation of the branching pattern of abdominal nerves is reported. The innervations of mouth parts, salivary glands, muscles, retrocerebral complex, spiracles, rectum, reproductive organs, alary muscles, and peripheral nerves are described.

A Novel Receptor Capable of Monitoring Applied Pressure in the Abdomen of an Insect

A pair of receptors, responding tonically to pressure applied internally, occurs on the ventral body wall of abdominal segments two to five in the adult of the blood-feeding insect,Rhodnius prolixus.These receptors are located in a region of the body wall subject to forces directly related to the size and movement of the stomach, an enlarged region of the midgut which stores the blood meal, and are therefore well suited for monitoring the degree of distension there. The initiation of many endocrinological processes inRhodniusis known to be associated with the detection, over a period of several days, of abdominal distension, and these sensory receptors are capable of responding to abdominal distension for extended periods of time.