Demonstration of intense glutamate-like immunoreactivity in the longitudinal nerve cords of the cestode Hymenolepis diminuta.

Glutamate-like immunoreactivity in the cestode Hymenolepis diminuta was studied at the light microscopic level using an antibody specifically directed against a reduced conjugate of glutamate linked to protein by glutaraldehyde. Relatively low levels of glutamate-like immunoreactivity were present in the subtegumental region, which was presumed to reflect an active metabolic pool. Relatively high levels of this reactivity were observed in the longitudinal nerve cords and associated cells, and somewhat lower levels were occasionally noted in ring commissures. The present data in conjunction with previous studies on glutamate in H. diminuta, support the hypothesis that glutamate is an excitatory neurotransmitter in the platyhelminths.