title: Excretory system of representatives from family Diplozoidae (Monogenea).
abstract: Diplozoons are representatives of blood-feeding ectoparasites from the family Diplozoidae (Polyopisthocotylea, Monogenea). Although these worms have been the subject of numerous taxonomical, phylogenetic, and ecological studies, the detailed study of their excretory system has remained relatively neglected. Our observations focused on the morphological and ultrastructural features of the excretory apparatus of four diplozoid species: Diplozoon paradoxum, Eudiplozoon nipponicum, Paradiplozoon bliccae, and Paradiplozoon homoion. Observations were obtained using two microscope methods: light microscopy, equipped with differential interference contrast (Nomarski DIC) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The ultrastructure of two basic compartments which forms the excretory apparatus, flame cells with filtration apparatus, and canal cells forming the protonephridial ducts is revealed in this study. A unique consecutive sequence of longitudinal semi-thin sections of the excretory pore of E. nipponicum is visualized there for the first time.
authors.affiliation: Department of Botany and Zoology, Faculty of Science, Masaryk University, Kotlářská 2, 611 37, Brno, Czech Republic. 184753@mail.muni.cz.
authors.forename: V
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Konstanzová
authors.affiliation: Department of Botany and Zoology, Faculty of Science, Masaryk University, Kotlářská 2, 611 37, Brno, Czech Republic.
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Koubková
authors.affiliation: Department of Botany and Zoology, Faculty of Science, Masaryk University, Kotlářská 2, 611 37, Brno, Czech Republic.|Department of Parasitology, Faculty of Science, Charles University in Prague, Viničná 7, 128 44, Prague, Czech Republic.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kašný
authors.affiliation: Department of Botany and Zoology, Faculty of Science, Masaryk University, Kotlářská 2, 611 37, Brno, Czech Republic.
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Ilgová
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical Biology, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Warmia and Mazury University, Żolnierska 14c, 10-561, Olsztyn, Poland.
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Dzika
authors.affiliation: Department of Botany and Zoology, Faculty of Science, Masaryk University, Kotlářská 2, 611 37, Brno, Czech Republic.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Gelnar
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D013045:Species Specificity; D014200:Trematoda / Q000648:ultrastructure*
keywords: Diplozoidae; Excretory system; Flame cell; Monogenea; Protonephridia; Ultrastructure