Glossary of nematological terms

A-B C-EF-I M-O PR-S T-V

In the paragraphs below, click on "Fig." to see a diagram of the defined structure, or click on to see a clip
with example

amixis: Reproduction that normally proceeds without fertilization,

although mixis is still possible.
amphid: One of two chemosensory/secretory structures on the anterior
end of nematodes, located midlaterally or slightly dorsosublaterally.
The amphids of many soil nematodes are very small and inconspicuous,
while they are often distinct in aquatic nematodes.
(Fig.)
amphidelphic: Female reproductive system with two branches
diverging in opposite directions from the vagina.
(Fig.) (anterior branch) (posterior branch of the same nematode)
amphimixis: Reproduction through cross fertilization.
anus: The exit opening of the digestive tract. It is usually a curved slit,
and sometimes a tiny pore.
(Fig.)
apomixis: Reproduction that never involves fertilization.
automixis: Reproduction through self-fertilization.
basal bulb: The swollen posteriormost part of the pharynx, also
referred to as end bulb or in some cases gland bulb. In Rhabditina and
Cephalobina, the basal bulb is distinctly spherical to pyriform, and
contains three finely striated transverse valves sometimes referred to
as butterfly valves.
(Fig.) (with transverse valves) (without valves) (overlapping gland bulb)
basal lamina: A very thin extracellular layer surrounding or
supporting epithelial cells (usually only visible with electron
microscopy).
Brenner, Sidney: A visionary scientist who led a research group in the
1970s that established the use of Caenorhabditis elegans as a powerful
model for addressing many biological questions.
buccal capsule: The cuticle of the stoma, in other words the lining of
the digestive tract between the mouth opening and the beginning of the
pharyngeal corpus.
(Fig.)
buccal cavity: The lumen of the stoma, in other words the cavity of the
digestive tract bounded by the mouth opening, the beginning of the
pharyngeal corpus, and the buccal capsule.
(Fig.)
bursa: Also called caudal alae. A sucker- or cap-shaped cuticular
structure on the male posterior end, consisting of two cuticular flaps,
wings or alae which jointly constitute the velum. The bursa can be
leptoderan or peloderan, and often includes genital sensilla modified
into rays. It is called "open" if the two wings do not join anterior to the
cloacal opening, and "closed" if they do.
(Fig.)
caudal alae: see –bursa”
cheilostom: The anteriormost main region of the stoma, bounded by
cuticle of the lips and (if present) labial probolae.
(Fig.)
cloaca: An internal cavity located at the junction of the digestive and
male reproductive system. In most male nematodes, the cloaca contains
spicules and a gubernaculum.
convergent evolution: The expression of characters that are similar as
a result, not of a shared evolution, but due to separate evolutionary
events
corpus: The anterior part of the pharynx proper, i.e. the anteriormost
region in which the lumen has a triradiate cross-section that is not
triangular but more or less Y-shaped.
(Fig.)
cuticle: The extracellular layer(s) covering the cells of the body wall
and lining parts of the digestive tract.
(Fig.)
deirid: A sensory structure in the lateral field, usually located near the
basal bulb. It is often papilliform in males and cryptic (i.e. invisible
even with SEM) in females.
(Fig.)
determinate cleavage: Development in which the destiny of each cell
is determined early in development and these early cells are not
readily adaptable to an alternate destiny.
didelphic: Female reproductive system with two (apparently)
functional ovaries.
(Fig.) anterior and posterior ovary in P. minor
endotokia matricida: Internal hatching of eggs and development of
juveniles, resulting in the death of the parent animal.
entomopathogenic: Life style characterized by the transmission of
bacteria fatal to an insect host, followed by nematode repoduction
inside this dead insect.
entomophilic: Life style characterized by parasitizing insects.
esophagus: see –pharynx”
excretory pore: The opening of the excretory-secretory system,
usually located near the nerve ring and deirids.
(Fig.)
freeliving: Life style characterized by lack of parasitism.
genital papillae: Sensory structures occurring only on the tail of adult
male nematodes (see also papilla).
(Fig.)
gonochorism: Reproduction through the fusion of two types of
gametes, produced by separate sexes.
gubernaculum: A more or less complex sclerotization of the dorsal
wall of the cloaca in male nematodes. It serves to anchor and guide the
spicules during copulation.
(Fig.)
gymnostom: The middle region of the stoma, bounded by so-called
arcade epidermis.
(Fig.)
haplodiploidy: Sex determination mechanism by which females are
diploid and males are haploid.
hermaphrodi(ti)sm: Reproduction through the fusion of two types of
gametes produced by the same individual(s).
hydrostatic skeleton: A system of maintaining body integrity (in place
of a true skeleton) by the effect of fluid pressure against resistance
provided by the body wall.
hypodermis: A living layer of the body wall that underlies and secretes
the cuticle, and also includes –hypodermal chords” that run the length
of the body, protruding into the body cavity in between the four sectors
of somatic musculature. The lateral hypodermal chords contain the
nuclei of the hypodermal cells, and sometimes also parts of the
excretory system, while the dorsal and ventral chords contain nerves.
(Fig.)
isthmus: The middle part of the pharynx, between corpus and basal
bulb. The isthmus is always more slender than the corpus. (Fig.)
lateral field: Also known as lateral alae. An area of the body cuticle
with one or more longitudinal ridges overlying the lateral hypodermal
chords.
lumen: The cavity inside a tubular organ or other open-ended hollow
structure.
median bulb: A strongly muscular swollen structure that may occur in
the posterior region of the pharyngeal corpus. Sometimes the median
bulb contains sclerotized longitudinal valves.
(Fig.)
metacorpus: The median bulb, or by extension the region homologous
to the median bulb in nematodes without posteriorly swollen
pharyngeal corpus.
(Fig.)
monodelphic: Female reproductive system with only one functional
ovary.
(Fig.) anterior and only ovary in P. penetrans posterior and only ovary in X. hygrophilum
nerve ring: A ring of nerve fibers surrounding the digestive tract
(usually the pharynx) of nematodes. It is often quite difficult to see in
preserved specimens.
(Fig.) (overview in different pharynx types) (an unusually clear example)
ocellus: Also known as eyespot. Ocelli are sensilla capable of detecting
light. They are relatively rare in nematodes.
(Fig.)
oesophagus: see –pharynx”
odontophore: In nematodes with an odontostyle, the cuticle lining the
pharynx is usually weakly or strongly thickened just posterior to the
odontostyle. This thickened cuticle is the odontophore.
(Fig.)
odontostyle: A spear assumed to be derived from modification of a
single tooth that has become a straight, hollow tube with tapering tip. A
true odontostyle occurs only in the order Dorylaimida, and usually
consists of a single part. However, it can sometimes be confused with a
stomatostylet if the odontophore is strongly sclerotized.
(Fig.)
onchiostyle: A spear-like slender tooth that is curved and not truly
hollow. An onchiostyle only occurs in the family Trichodoridae.
(Fig.)
opisthodelphic: Female reproductive system directed posteriad from
the vagina.
opisthodelphic system in X. hygrophilum

ovary: The female germinative organ, producing oocytes. In many

nematodes, it can be recognized under light microscope through the
gradually increasing size and opacity of its oocytes from germination
zone to ripening zone.
(Fig.)
oviduct: A usually short cellular canal connecting ovary to uterus. In
amphimictic species, it is the site of fertilization of oocytes by sperm
cells. In Cephaloboidea and some Panagrolaimoidea, the junction of
oviduct and uterus bears an anteriorly directed offset spermatheca. In
other nematodes, the oviduct can be distended into an axial
spermatheca. The oviduct is easily obscured by eggs or oocytes.
(Fig.)
papilla: A protruding sensillum that is not hair-like or tube-like, but
shorter than wide and rounded. Papillae are assumed to be
mechanoreceptors only.
(Fig.)
parthenogenesis: Reproduction without fusion of gametes or gamete
nuclei.
peloderan: A bursa that extends over the tail tip.
(Fig.)
pharynx: Also known as (o)esophagus. The anterior major organ in the
digestive system. It often has a triradiate lumen, is bounded by its own
basal lamina, and is of mixed ectodermal and mesodermal origin. The
pharynx is often wholly or partly muscular because it usually acts as a
pump that sucks food into the mouth and transports it into the
intestine.
(Fig.)
phasmid: A sensory/secretory opening on each side of the body, usually
(but not always) located midlaterally on the tail. In male nematodes,
SEM is often required to distinguish the phsmid from genital papillae.
(Fig.)
phytoparasite: Life style characterized by parasitizing plants
plant parasite: see –phytoparasite”
postvulval sac: A blind sac extending posteriorly from the vagina in
many (but not all) prodelphic-monodelphic female nematodes. Also
called the postvulval uterine branch (PUB) or postvulval uterine sac
(PUS). It is assumed to be a rudimentary posterior uterus, although its
cell structure and texture usually differs from that of the anterior
uterus.
(Fig.)
predator: Life style characterized by feeding on small animals such as
other nematodes.
probola: One of two types of cuticular processes projecting anteriorly
from the lip region in a tri- or hexaradiate pattern of symmetry.
Probolae are purely cuticular and contain neither nerve nor muscle
cells. They appear to serve as scoops, brushes or flow guides with which
bacteria are collected and diverted towards the mouth while the
nematode moves through the soil.
(Fig.)
procorpus: In species with a median bulb, the slender region of the
phrayngeal corpus that lies anterior to the median bulb. In species
without a median bulb, this term can be used to denote the anterior
part of the corpus homologous to the former case. (Fig.)
prodelphic: Female reproductive system directed anteriad from the
vagina.
(Fig.) prodelphic system in P. penetrans
pseudocoelom: A body cavity that, unlike a true coelom, does not
develop in the gastrula from a secondary invagination of the
mesoderm. Rather it develops between the endoderm and ectoderm. In
the adult it is considered to persist as a fluid-filled sac.
pseudocoelomate: Describing a group of phyla that are considered to
have a pseudocoelom. Recent evidence suggests that this grouping is
artificial and is not the product of shared evolution.
pseudogamy: Reproductive mechanism whereby sperm penetration
stimulates completion of oocyte meiosis, but no fusion of occurs sperm
and oocyte pronuclei.
radius: One of the three arms of the pharyngeal lumen on transverse
section.
ray: A genital sensillum resembling a tube, usually incorporated in the
wings of the bursa. It is often impossible to distinguish the phasmids
from genital sensilla if a bursa is present, and the phasmids are then
also counted as rays.
(Fig.)
rectum: The cuticular exit of the digestive system leading to the anus.
(Fig.)
sensillum: A sensory structure capable of receiving stimuli from the
external environment. Nematodes have many different types of
sensilla, depending on whether they e.g. protrude above the cuticle or
not, or whether they have an external opening or not.
(Fig.)
seta: A protruding sensillum that is longer than wide and often pointed,
more or less resembling a microscopic hair. Most setae are assumed to
be mechanoreceptors only, although some may have an adhesive
function.
(Fig.)
spear: A hollow needle-like structure in the stoma of some groups of
nematodes, used for piercing food items and ingesting their contents.
(Fig.)
spermatheca: A flexible sac or expansion of the female reproductive
system. In amphimictic and hermaphroditic species, it serves as storage
site for sperm. In parthenogenetic species, it presumably seves no
purpose and is usually less clearly developed. The spermatheca may be
difficult to see, especially when large oocytes or eggs are present.
(Fig.)
spicule: One of (usually) two male copulatory organs in nematodes.
(Fig.)
stegostom: The posteriormost part of the stoma, encircled by the
anteriormost muscle and epidermis cells of the pharynx.
(Fig.)
stoma: The entry region of the digestive system, between mouth
opening and pharyngeal corpus. It consists of the buccal capsule and
the buccal cavity, and can often be subdivided further by the presence
of various sclerotizations, or on the basis of surrounding cell types.
(Fig.)
(stomato)stylet: A spear assumed to be derived from fusions of
different parts of the stoma, and especially different parts of the buccal
capsule. A stomatostylet occurs in the order Tylenchida and usually
consists of three parts: an anterior cone, a central shaft and posterior
knobs.
(Fig.)
total cleavage: Early development in which the –egg” lacks a yolk so
that it divides in its entirety to form an embryo.
triploblastic: Development which results in three germ layers:
ectoderm, endoderm and mesoderm.
uterus: That part of the female reproductive system where the egg shell
is formed. In amphimictic species, it usually extends from the point of
fertilization of oocytes to the vagina.
(Fig.)
vagina: The cuticular channel connecting the female reproductive
tract(s) to the vulva.
(Fig.)
vulva: The female genital opening, usually shaped as a transverse slit, a
pore or a longitudinal slit.
(Fig.)