Stomatogenesis in the ditransversal ciliate Homalozoon vermiculare (Ciliophora, Rhabdophora)

H. vermiculare possesses about 10 somatic kineties on the right lateral side, 3 somatic kineties on the left lateral side and a single circumoral kinety. The somatic kineties are composed of monokinetids exc\~ept for the anterior ends of the brush kineties which are composed of dikinetids. The circumoral kinety consists of paired kinetosomes one of which is nonciliated and associated with a microtubular lamella and a nematodesma. Stomatogenesis commences when the anteriormost somatic kinetosomes in the opisthe are transformed into the nonciliated kinetosomes of the future oral dikinetid. They lose the somatic infraciliary fibers and the ciliary shaft and each gives rise to a nematodesma and a microtubular ribbon. Adjacent to each of the transformed somatic kinetosomes, a new kinetosome is assembled, thus producing an oral dikinetid anlage. The new anterior kinetosome bears a cilium and becomes the ciliferous kinetosome of the oral wreath of cilia. In protargol stained specimens, proliferation of kinetosomes can first be observed in the left lateral kineties but, eventually, each of the somatic kineties produces one kinetofragment. Thus, H. vermiculare has a holotelokinetal type of stomatogenesis. The cirumoral kinety arises from a counter-clockwise rotation (as viewed from outside the cell) of all 15 dikinetid kinetofragments and subsequent "head to tail" fusion of the fragments after cell division has been completed. The oral apparatus of the proter seems to be largely conserved during division. Some aspects of the evolution of the oral apparatus and the origin of the oral microtubular ribbons are discussed.