Ultrastructure of the epithelium of the upper ejaculatory duct of the mealworm beetle, Tenebrio molitor

The male mealworm, Tenebrio molitor produces a spermatophore to facilitate transfer of sperm to the female. The wall of the spermatophore is largely produced from the secretions of the paired bean-shaped accessory glands (BAGs). As the cottony pre-spermatophoric mass from the BAGs comes together in the ejaculatory duct where it is molded into the spermatophore, it becomes tougher and more elastic. The mechanisms involved in this stabilization of the wall of the spermatophore were unknown. Mechanisms of stabilization of other acellular structures assembled in extracellular space include quinone-tanning and β-sclerotization in cuticle, shear forces in silk, and pH changes in the spermatophore of Rhodnius. The cells found in the epithelium of the upper ejaculatory duct of the mealworm beetle were examined by transmission electron microscopy for ultrastructural evidence of a role in the stabilization of the spermatophore wall.