Three-dimensional reconstruction of a whole insect reveals its phloem sap-sucking mechanism at nano-resolution
- Zhejiang University, China
- Carl Zeiss (Shanghai) Co Ltd, China
- University of Amsterdam, Netherlands
- Université Côte d'Azur, CNRS, Inserm, France
- Ningbo University, China
Abstract
Using serial block face scanning electron microscopy (SBF-SEM), we report on the internal 3D structures of the brown planthopper, Nilaparvata lugens (Hemiptera: Delphacidae) at nanometer resolution for the first time. Within the reconstructed organs and tissues, we found many novel and fascinating internal structures in the planthopper such as naturally occurring three four-way rings connecting adjacent spiracles to facilitate efficient gas exchange, and fungal endosymbionts in a single huge insect cell occupying 22% of the abdomen volume to enable the insect to live on plant sap. To understand the muscle and stylet movement during phloem sap-sucking, the cephalic skeleton and muscles were reconstructed in feeding nymphs. The results revealed an unexpected contraction of the protractors of the stylets, and suggested a novel feeding model for the phloem sap-sucking.
Data availability
All data generated or analysed during this study are included in the manuscript and supporting files. Source data files have been provided for Figures 1-5.
Article and author information
Author details
Funding
National Natural Science Foundation of China (31630057)
- Chuan Xi Zhang
National Natural Science Foundation of China (31871954)
- Chuan Xi Zhang
Natural Science Foundation of Zhejiang Province (LQ20C040003)
- Jian-sheng Guo
The funders had no role in study design, data collection and interpretation, or the decision to submit the work for publication.
Copyright
© 2021, Wang et al.
This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License permitting unrestricted use and redistribution provided that the original author and source are credited.
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Three-dimensional reconstruction of a whole insect reveals its phloem sap-sucking mechanism at nano-resolution
eLife 10:e62875.
https://doi.org/10.7554/eLife.62875
