EFFECTS OF SINUS GLAND EXTRACTS ON LARVAL MOLTING AND ECDYSTEROID TITERS OF THE AMERICAN LOBSTER, HOMARUS AMERICANUS

¹ Bodega Marine Laboratory, University of California, P. O. Box 247, Bodega Bay, California 94923

Eyestalk ablation of 2nd stage larvae of the lobster, Homarus americanus, resulted in an accelerated rise in whole larval ecdysteroid titers during the 3rd stage. The appearance of both the premolt ecdysteroid peak and the subsequent ecdysis were accelerated by eyestalk removal during the previous molt interval. Replacement therapy, using sinus gland (SG) extracts from juvenile lobsters injected into 3rd stage larvae (ablated during the 2nd stage), delayed the next molt. This delay was significantly longer than for larvae injected with non-sinus gland (NSG) eyestalk tissue extracts. Sinus gland extracts also decreased ecdysteroid titers of ablated larvae within 12 h. Basal levels were maintained in SG-injected larvae while control larvae reached the premolt peak. These results indicate that a molt-inhibitory mechanism similar to that of juvenile and adult decapod crustaceans may also exist in lobster larvae.

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