Stichocytes are glandular unicellular cells arranged in a row along the posterior portion of the

oesophagus The esophagus (American English) or oesophagus (British English; both ), non-technically known also as the food pipe or gullet, is an organ in vertebrates through which food passes, aided by peristaltic contractions, from the pharynx to the ...

, each of which communicates by a single pore with the lumen of the oesophagus. They contain

mitochondria A mitochondrion (; ) is an organelle found in the Cell (biology), cells of most Eukaryotes, such as animals, plants and Fungus, fungi. Mitochondria have a double lipid bilayer, membrane structure and use aerobic respiration to generate adenosi ...

, rough

endoplasmic reticulum The endoplasmic reticulum (ER) is, in essence, the transportation system of the eukaryotic cell, and has many other important functions such as protein folding. It is a type of organelle made up of two subunits – rough endoplasmic reticulum ( ...

, abundant

Golgi apparatus The Golgi apparatus (), also known as the Golgi complex, Golgi body, or simply the Golgi, is an organelle found in most eukaryotic cells. Part of the endomembrane system in the cytoplasm, it packages proteins into membrane-bound vesicles ins ...

es, and usually 1 of 2 types of secretory granules, α-granules and β-granules, indicating secretory function Chitwood, B. G. & Chitwood, M. B. (1950). Introduction to Nematology (Vol. 1). Baltimore: Monumental Printing Co. . Collectively stichocytes form the

stichosome Stichosome (from Greek ''stichos (στίχος)'' = row; ''soma (σῶµα)'' = body) is a multicellular organ that is very prominent in some stages of nematodes and consists of a longitudinal series of glandular unicellular cells ( stichocytes) a ...

. Characteristic of

Trichocephalida The Trichocephalida (Trichinellida or Trichurida in other classifications) is an order of parasitic nematodes. Taxonomy The order Trichocephalida includes, according to modern classifications, the single suborder Trichinellina Hodda, 2007, wh ...

and

Mermithida Mermithida is an order of nematode worms. The order includes two families, and most members are endoparasites on arthropods. One of the morphological characteristic of the order is the presence of a stichosome.Chitwood, B. G. & Chitwood, M. B. ...

, two groups of

nematode The nematodes ( or grc-gre, Νηματώδη; la, Nematoda) or roundworms constitute the phylum Nematoda (also called Nemathelminthes), with plant-Parasitism, parasitic nematodes also known as eelworms. They are a diverse animal phylum inhab ...

References

{{reflist, 30em Helminthology Nematode anatomy