Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 17, 2026

Measuring Hypopharyngeal Gland Acinus Size in Honey Bee (Apis mellifera) Workers
Published on: September 14, 2018
Comparing the secretory pathway in honeybee venom and hypopharyngeal glands
Homayoun Kheyri1, Bronwen W Cribb, David J Merritt
1School of Biological Sciences, The University of Queensland, Mansfield Place, Brisbane, Queensland 4072, Australia.
Abstract:
We provide insights into the secretory pathway of arthropod gland systems by comparing the royal jelly-producing hypopharyngeal glands and the venom-producing glands of the honeybee, Apis mellifera. These glands have different functions and different product release characteristics, but both belong to the class 3 types of insect glands, each being composed of two cells, a secretory cell and a microduct-forming cell. The hypopharyngeal secretory cells possess an extremely elongate tubular invagination that is filled with a cuticular structure, the end-apparatus, anchored against the cell membrane by a conspicuous series of actin rings. In contrast, venom glands have no actin rings, but instead have an actin-rich brush border surrounding the comparatively short and narrow end-apparatus. We relate these cytoskeletal differences to the production system and utilisation of secretions; venom is stored in a reservoir whereas royal jelly and enzymes are produced on demand. Fluorescence-based characterisation of the actin cytoskeleton combined with scanning electron microscopy of the end-apparatus allows for detailed characterisation of the point of secretion release in insect class 3 glands.
Related Concept Videos
Exocrine Glands: Methods of Secretion
Merocrine Secretion
Merocrine secretion is the most common type of exocrine secretion. The secretions are enclosed in vesicles and moved to the cell's apical surface, where the contents are released by exocytosis. For example, mucous, a watery secretion rich in the glycoprotein mucin, is a merocrine secretion. The eccrine glands...
Overview of Secretory Vesicles
Various proteins regulate the aggregation of molecules inside the secretory vesicles. Chromogranins...
Exocrine Glands: Types of Secretions
Serous glands produce watery secretions rich in digestive enzymes and proteins. The constituent cells of the serous gland have centrally located nuclei and eosinophilic secretory granules in the cytoplasm. The parotid gland is an example of a serous gland. It secretes saliva, which contains enzymes, such as lipases and...
Regulation of Hormone Secretion
Humoral stimuli,...
Secretory Phase
Following ovulation, the corpus luteum, a temporary endocrine structure, produces progesterone and estrogens. These hormones stimulate the growth and coiling of endometrial...
Insulin Secretory Vesicles

