The Structure and Deposition of the Cuticle in the Adult Mealworm, <i>Tenebrio molitor</i> L. (Coleoptera)

Abstract

ABSTRACT In three earlier papers (Wigglesworth, 1933, 1945, 1947a) the structure and deposition of the cuticle of Rhodnius prolixus have been described. The main conclusions reached were as follows. The epicuticle is a composite structure made up of four layers: (i) a ‘cuticulin’ layer composed of a condensed lipoprotein subsequently tanned by quinones; (ii) a layer of material rich in dihydroxyphenols; (iii) a thin layer of crystalline, orientated wax molecules responsible for the waterproofing of the cuticle (cf. Beament, 1945); and (iv) an outermost ‘cement’ layer protecting the wax.