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Memórias do Instituto Oswaldo Cruz
Fundação Oswaldo Cruz, Fiocruz
ISSN: 1678-8060 EISSN: 1678-8060
Vol. 95, No. 5, 2000, pp. 743-746
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Bioline Code: oc00118
Full paper language: English
Document type: Research Article
Document available free of charge
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Memórias do Instituto Oswaldo Cruz, Vol. 95, No. 5, 2000, pp. 743-746
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An Ocellar "Pupil" that Does Not Change with Light Intensity, but with the Insect Age in Triatoma infestans
Teresita C Insausti & Claudio R Lazzari
Abstract
The simple eyes (ocelli) of recently emerged adult Triatoma infestans exhibit a narrow elongated "pupil", surrounded by a ring of brown-reddish pigment, the "iris". This pupil does not respond to changes in the illumination, but varies in size after the imaginal ecdysis. This change corresponds, internally, with the growth of the corneal lens and the associated retina up to an age of about 20 days. This has not been previously observed in an insect. The use of this characteristic for recognising young adults of this species is suggested.
Keywords
Triatoma, simple eyes, ocelli, Chagas vectors, ageing
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