[Ultrastructure of the digestive system in Dermatophagoides farinae (Acariformes:Pyroglyphidae)].

Fifty living mites (Dermatophagoides farinae) were fixed in 2.5% glutaraldehyde, postfixed in 1% osmium tetroxide, dehydrated in a graded ethanol series, embedded in embedding medium. The ultrastructure of the digestive tract in D. farinae was observed by serial ultrathin sections with a transmission electron microscope. The alimentary canal of D. farinae consists of the cuticle-lined foregut and hindgut separated by a microvilli-lined midgut (anterior midgut, posterior midgut). There are different types of epithelial cells in the anterior midgut The microvilli of epithelial cells in posterior midgut are longer than that of the anterior midgut In posterior midgut, the food bolus is surrounded by the peritrophic membrane. The midgut is the main site of digestion and absorption.