Ultrastructural study of hemocytes and phagocytes associated with hemolymphatic vessels in the hepatopancreas of Palaemonetes zariquieyi (Crustacea, Decapoda).

Ultrastructural and cytochemical studies of the hepatopancreatic hemal space of Palaemonetes zariquieyi revealed the presence of three cell types: 1) hemocytes containing spherical and elongated granules, also localized in heart and the branchial hemal space; 2) cells containing lipidic inclusions and sub-polyhedric granules with a paracrystalline component; and 3) phagocytic cells surrounding hemal vessels, exhibiting positive acid phosphatase reactivity in the Golgi complex and lysosomes. Possible functions of these cell types are discussed.