Reaction of surface lamella of moth spermatozoa to vinblastine

Previous ultrastructural studies appear to indicate that the lacinate appendages (highly elaborated laminar structures which cover the surface of moth spermatozoa) may be intracellular derivatives of transient microtobules found in the elongating spermatids of these insects. Additional support for this theory is supplied by the present study in which testes of the warehouse moth Ephestia cautella were treated in vivo with the antimitotic agent vinblastine sulphate. Solutions containing 10(-5) M vinblastine caused the lacinate appendages to become poorly resolved, and at 10(3) M they disappeared. This concentration-dependent response of the appendages to vinblastine resembles that of tubulin-containing structures.