EFFECTS OF COLCHICINE ON MOBILITY AND CHEMORECEPTION OF HETERODERA-SCHACHTII (NEMATODA, HETERODERIDAE) MALES

In a biotest used to observe male nematode behaviour in the presence of a female sex pheromone gradient, colchicine significantly inhibited the mobility of Heterodera schachtii males when pretreated for 2 or 4 h in a concentration of 100 mmol l-1. Under the same conditions colchicine also caused a significant inhibition of sex pheromone reception 30-120 min after the beginning of the test. Shorter incubation times or a colchicine concentration of 10 mmol l-1 were mostly ineffective. It is hypothesized that the primary targets of colchicine were the microtubules of motor neurons, interneurons or of the cytoskeleton rather than sensory neuron microtubules, and that a limited adaptation to colchicine took place.