Gubernaculum (nematode anatomy)
Appearance
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/9a/Gongylonema_pulchrum_nematode_from_man_Figure_2f.jpg/220px-Gongylonema_pulchrum_nematode_from_man_Figure_2f.jpg)
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/38/Parasite140007-fig3_Philometra_piscaria_Moravec_%26_Justine%2C_2014_%28Nematoda%2C_Philometridae%29.tif/lossy-page1-220px-Parasite140007-fig3_Philometra_piscaria_Moravec_%26_Justine%2C_2014_%28Nematoda%2C_Philometridae%29.tif.jpg)
In nematodes, the gubernaculum is a hardened or sclerotized structure in the wall that guides the protrusion of the spicule during copulation.[1] For example, in Caenorhabditis elegans, spicules serve to open and dilate the vagina of the hermaphrodite and the gubernaculum is a grooved plate in which the spicules move; the gubernaculum is controlled by two erector and two protractor muscles.[1]
The shape and size of the gubernaculum are often important characters for the systematics of nematodes.[2]
References[edit]
- ^ a b Bird, Alan; Bird, Jean (1991). The structure of nematodes. San Diego: Academic Press. ISBN 0-12-099651-0.
- ^ Chitwood, Benjamin Goodwin; Chitwood, May Belle Hutson (1937). Introduction to Nematology (Vol. 1). doi:10.5962/bhl.title.7355.