The midgut of millipedes is composed of a simple
epithelium that rests on a basal lamina, which is surrounded by
visceral muscles and hepatic cells. As the material for our studies,
we chose Telodeinopus aoutii (Demange, 1971) (Kenyan
millipede) (Diplopoda, Spirostreptida), which lives in the rain
forests of Central Africa. This commonly reared species is easy
to obtain from local breeders and easy to culture in the laboratory.
During our studies, we used transmission and scanning
electron microscopes and light and fluorescent microscopes.
The midgut epithelium of the species examined here shares
similarities to the structure of the millipedes analyzed to date.
The midgut epithelium is composed of three types of cells—
digestive, secretory, and regenerative cells. Evidence of three
types of secretion have been observed in themidgut epithelium:
merocrine, apocrine, and microapocrine secretion. The regenerative
cells of the midgut epithelium in millipedes fulfill the
role of midgut stem cells because of their main functions: selfrenewal
(the ability to divide mitotically and to maintain in an
undifferentiated state) and potency (ability to differentiate into
digestive cells). We also confirmed that spot desmosomes are
common intercellular junctions between the regenerative and
digestive cells in millipedes.
