METABOLIC LINKS BETWEEN SOMATIC SEXUAL-MATURATION AND OOGENESIS IN NEREID ANNELIDS - A BRIEF REVIEW

Oogenesis in nereids is reviewed as a problem of regulatory physiology , and the current knowledge on the metabolic links between somatic tis sues and growing oocytes is reported. One type of free-floating coelom ocyte, the eleocyte, stores lipid and glycogen, is highly active in hi stolysis related to sexual maturation and secretes vitellogenin and me tabolites in a sex-specific manner. Eleocytes are therefore considered principal distributors of metabolites during sexual maturation. A str ategy is described for determining the flow of metabolites between ele ocytes and oocytes both of which can be studied separately in cell cul ture. The metabolic links are regarded as being capable of, and suffic ient for, regulating oocyte growth.