Abstract
ALL the hypotheses relating to the discharging mechanism of the stinging capsules of Cœlenterates hitherto seem to postulate that an enhanced intracapsular pressure forces out the stinging thread. However, the elongated (about 50 µ) ellipsoid type of nematocysts (‘penicilli’ of Stephenson1), which can be isolated in quantity from the acontial filaments of Diadumene luciae in the form of a dense nematocyst suspension, have provided evidence that full hydrostatic pressure exists within the capsules in the resting state, so that only a releasing action from outside is necessary for the thread eversion to take place2. At any rate, Glaser and Sparrow's view3 of the Metridium nematocyst as a simple osmometer cannot hold for the present material. The nematocysts of Diadumene possess a capsular wall impermeable to water, and will remain undischarged in distilled water, with their discharging capacity retained for several hours.
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References
Stephenson, T. A., J. Mar. Biol. Assoc., 16, 173 (1929).
Yanagita, T. M., J. Fac. Sci., Tokyo Imp. Univ., Sec. iv, 6, 97 (1943).
Glaser, O. C., and Sparrow, C. M., J. Exp. Zool., 6, 361 (1909).
Yanagita, T. M., and Wada, T., Nat. Sci. Rep., Ocha. Univ., 4, 112 (1953).
Brown, C. H., Nature, 166, 439 (1950).
Goddard, D. R., and Michaelis, L., J. Biol. Chem., 106, 605 (1934).
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YANAGITA, T., WADA, T. Effects of Trypsin and Thioglycollate upon the Nematocysts of the Sea Anemone. Nature 173, 171 (1954). https://doi.org/10.1038/173171a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/173171a0
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