Transport of symbiont-encoded cellulases from the gill to the gut of shipworms via the enigmatic ducts of Deshayes: a 174-year mystery solved.

ABSTRACT: Shipworms (Bivalvia, Teredinidae) are the principal consumers of wood in marine environments. Like most wood-eating organisms, they digest wood with the aid of cellulolytic enzymes supplied by symbiotic bacteria. However, in shipworms the symbiotic bacteria are not found in the digestive system. Instead, they are located intracellularly in the gland of Deshayes, a specialized tissue found within the gills. It has been independently demonstrated that symbiont-encoded cellulolytic enzymes are present in the digestive systems and gills of two shipworm species, Bankia setacea and Lyrodus pedicellatus, confirming that these enzymes are transported from the gills to the lumen of the gut. However, the mechanism of enzyme transport from gill to gut remains incompletely understood. Re

SUBMITTER: Altamia MA 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9653257 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature