ORIGINAL ARTICLE STUDIES ON HISTOLOGICAL CHANGES IN FAT BODY AND SILK GLAND OF SILKWORM BOMBYX MORI (L.) (LEPIDOPTERA: BOMBYCIDAE) FED WITH MR 2 MULBERRY LEAVES AND VEGETABLE DYE TREATED MULBERRY LEAVES

The domesticated silkworm, Bombyx mori has been the target of intensive scientific study. Since the dawn of human civilization, the silkworm has been used as a source of silk for producing exquisite textile and dress materials. Because it is industrial importance „serio‟ is a latin word meaning silk. Silk “the queen of fibers” is admired by people the world over the silk products are always in great demand. Silk is a fine, lustrous, resilient, elastic and strong proteinaceious fiber. It has been the most loved material for fabrics silk, keeping in this view, the present study is aimed to find out the histological changes in the fat body, and silk gland of silkworm fed with treated vegetable dye on mulberry MR2 leaves. The present result revealed that characteristic histological changes in the V instars of silkworm, fat body and silk gland of silkworm fed with treated vegetable dye than control silkworm. Silkworm fat body consisted of nucleus, cytoplasmic vacuole and granular substances. In control, silk gland showed columnor epithelium with nucleus, vacuoles and the lumen contained secretory substances, whereas in vegetable dye treated MR2 mulberry leaves fed silkworm in the V instar fat body and silk gland showed spectacular changes such as swollen nucleus, with more vacuoles in the fat body, whereas, the silk gland showed shrunken nucleus, vacuole in the epithelium, lumen contained less substances suggested that the mobilization of to secretory substance from V instar posterior silk gland to middle silk gland which enhance and to store more amount of secretory substance for spinning.