FMRF-amide immunoreactivity in a moth larva (Heliothis zea): The cerebral nervous system.
The cerebral nervous system of the larval corn earworm, Heliothis zea, was examined using light microscopy and immunocytochemistry. Immunoreactivity for the molluscan cardioactive peptide FMRF-amide (FMRFa) is widely distributed. Staining is localized in perikarya and axons of the brain, subesophageal ganglion and first thoracic ganglion. Immunoreactive axons are also found in the frontal ganglion and the corpora cardiaca. Crossreactivity studies for FMRFa and bovine pancreatic polypeptide (BPP) demonstrate that (a) the immunoreactive material is more FMRFa-like than BPP-like and (b) the antigenic material is heterogeneous. For animals on different feeding regimens, immunocytochemical surveys and radioimmunoassay suggest the observed variation in immunoreactivity among individuals is unrelated to feeding state.
Jenkins
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AC
Department of Zoology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602 USA Telephone: (404)542-3310.
Brown
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Crim
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