title: Visualization and 3D reconstruction of flame cells of Taenia solium (cestoda).
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Flame cells are the terminal cells of protonephridial systems, which are part of the excretory systems of invertebrates. Although the knowledge of their biological role is incomplete, there is a consensus that these cells perform excretion/secretion activities. It has been suggested that the flame cells participate in the maintenance of the osmotic environment that the cestodes require to live inside their hosts. In live Platyhelminthes, by light microscopy, the cells appear beating their flames rapidly and, at the ultrastructural, the cells have a large body enclosing a tuft of cilia. Few studies have been performed to define the localization of the cytoskeletal proteins of these cells, and it is unclear how these proteins are involved in cell function.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Parasites of two different developmental stages of T. solium were used: cysticerci recovered from naturally infected pigs and intestinal adults obtained from immunosuppressed and experimentally infected golden hamsters. Hamsters were fed viable cysticerci to recover adult parasites after one month of infection. In the present studies focusing on flame cells of cysticerci tissues was performed. Using several methods such as video, confocal and electron microscopy, in addition to computational analysis for reconstruction and modeling, we have provided a 3D visual rendition of the cytoskeletal architecture of Taenia solium flame cells.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  We consider that visual representations of cells open a new way for understanding the role of these cells in the excretory systems of Platyhelminths. After reconstruction, the observation of high resolution 3D images allowed for virtual observation of the interior composition of cells. A combination of microscopic images, computational reconstructions and 3D modeling of cells appears to be useful for inferring the cellular dynamics of the flame cell cytoskeleton.
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Microbiología y Parasitología, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM), México City, Distrito Federal, México.
authors.forename: Laura E
authors.initials: LE
authors.lastname: Valverde-Islas
authors.forename: Esteban
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Arrangoiz
authors.forename: Elio
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Vega
authors.forename: Lilia
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Robert
authors.forename: Rafael
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Villanueva
authors.forename: Olivia
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Reynoso-Ducoing
authors.forename: Kaethe
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Willms
authors.forename: Armando
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Zepeda-Rodríguez
authors.forename: Teresa I
authors.initials: TI
authors.lastname: Fortoul
authors.forename: Javier R
authors.initials: JR
authors.lastname: Ambrosio
mesh_terms: D000199:Actins / Q000378:metabolism; D000818:Animals; D006224:Cricetinae; D007091:Image Processing, Computer-Assisted / Q000379:methods*; D021621:Imaging, Three-Dimensional / Q000379:methods*; D007814:Larva / Q000166:cytology / Q000378:metabolism / Q000648:ultrastructure; D008856:Microscopy, Fluorescence; D024462:Myosin Type II / Q000378:metabolism; D034421:Sus scrofa / Q000469:parasitology; D041201:Taenia solium / Q000166:cytology* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000648:ultrastructure; D014404:Tubulin / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D000199:Actins; D014404:Tubulin; D024462:Myosin Type II