title: Distribution and probable physiological role of esterases in reproductive, digestive, and fat-body tissues of the adult cotton boll weevil, Anthonomus grandis Boh.
abstract: Polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis was used to examine gut, Malpighian tube, fat-body, testes, and ovarioles tissues of the adult cotton boll weevil, Anthonomus grandis Boh. Esterases for which the inheritance has been reported previously by Terranova using whole-body homogenates were detected in dissected tissues and the probable physiological function of each allozyme is suggested. EST-1 occurs most frequently in ovarioles and female fat bodies. EST-2 is most often found in fat bodies and may be important in lipid turnover. No sex difference was observed. EST-3S is found in fat bodies and reproductive tissue, while EST-3F is always located in gut tissues, indicating that EST-3 is not controlled by a single autosomal locus with two codominant alleles as previously reported. EST-4, the most abundant esterase, can be detected in gut tissue at any age and is probably involved in digestion. EST-5 contains four allozymes which appear most frequently in testes and may be important during reproduction.
mesh_terms: D000273:Adipose Tissue / Q000201:enzymology; D000818:Animals; D001517:Coleoptera / Q000201:enzymology*; D004064:Digestive System / Q000201:enzymology; D004950:Esterases / Q000502:physiology*; D014018:Tissue Distribution; D014566:Urogenital System / Q000201:enzymology
chemical_list: D004950:Esterases