Table 1 Morphological characteristics associated with the phytophagous and mycetophagous phases of Bursaphelenchus xylophilus.

From: Ultrastructural plasticity in the plant-parasitic nematode, Bursaphelenchus xylophilus

Phase

Sex

n

Cuticle

Thickness (µm)

Lateral alae

Area (µm2)

Mycetophagous cultured on agar plates

M

6

0.32 ± 0.03*

0.19 ± 0.21*

Mycetophagous cultured on pine stems

M

10

0.27 ± 0.01

0.18 ± 0.15**

Phytophagous

M

7

0.26 ± 0.04

0.56 ± 0.25

Mycetophagous cultured on agar plates

F

7

0.29 ± 0.03*

0.01 ± 0.24

Mycetophagous cultured on pine stems

F

10

0.26 ± 0.02

0.04 ± 0.11

Phytophagous

F

6

0.26 ± 0.03

0.13 ± 0.32

  1. All numerical values are reported as the means ± standard deviation (SD). The measurements were carried out using ImageJ software version 1.52v (https://imagej.nih.gov/ij/)41. M male, F female, n number of replicates. Welch’s t-test was applied to compare the thickness of the cuticle and the area of the lateral alae between the phytophagous and mycetophagous phases (cultured on media plates and pine stems). The significance level was adjusted by the Bonferroni method. Asterisks indicate significant differences between phases (*P < 0.05, **P < 0.01).
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