Acetabulum (

plural The plural (sometimes abbreviated pl., pl, or ), in many languages, is one of the values of the grammatical category of number. The plural of a noun typically denotes a quantity greater than the default quantity represented by that noun. This de ...

acetabula) in

invertebrate zoology Invertebrate zoology is the subdiscipline of zoology that consists of the study of invertebrates, animals without a backbone (a structure which is found only in fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds and mammals). Invertebrates are a vast and very di ...

is a

saucer A saucer is a type of small dishware. While in the Middle Ages a saucer was used for serving condiments and sauces, currently the term is used to denote a small plate or shallow bowl that supports a cup – usually one used to serve coffee ...

-shaped organ of attachment in some

annelid worms The annelids (Annelida , from Latin ', "little ring"), also known as the segmented worms, are a large phylum, with over 22,000 extant taxon, extant species including ragworms, earthworms, and leeches. The species exist in and have adapted to v ...

(like

leech Leeches are segmented parasitic or predatory worms that comprise the subclass Hirudinea within the phylum Annelida. They are closely related to the oligochaetes, which include the earthworm, and like them have soft, muscular segmented bodie ...

) and

flatworms The flatworms, flat worms, Platyhelminthes, or platyhelminths (from the Greek πλατύ, ''platy'', meaning "flat" and ἕλμινς (root: ἑλμινθ-), ''helminth-'', meaning "worm") are a phylum of relatively simple bilaterian, unsegment ...

. It is a specialised sucker for

parasitic Parasitism is a close relationship between species, where one organism, the parasite, lives on or inside another organism, the host, causing it some harm, and is adapted structurally to this way of life. The entomologist E. O. Wilson has c ...

adaptation In biology, adaptation has three related meanings. Firstly, it is the dynamic evolutionary process of natural selection that fits organisms to their environment, enhancing their evolutionary fitness. Secondly, it is a state reached by the po ...

in trematodes by which the worms are able to attach on the

host A host is a person responsible for guests at an event or for providing hospitality during it. Host may also refer to: Places * Host, Pennsylvania, a village in Berks County People *Jim Host (born 1937), American businessman * Michel Host ...

. In annelids, it is basically a

locomotory organ Animal locomotion, in ethology, is any of a variety of methods that animals use to move from one place to another. Some modes of locomotion are (initially) self-propelled, e.g., running, swimming, jumping, flying, hopping, soaring and gliding. Th ...

for attaching to a substratum. The name also applies to the suction

appendage An appendage (or outgrowth) is an external body part, or natural prolongation, that protrudes from an organism's body. In arthropods, an appendage refers to any of the homologous body parts that may extend from a body segment, including anten ...

on the arms of cephalopod molluscs such as

squid True squid are molluscs with an elongated soft body, large eyes, eight arms, and two tentacles in the superorder Decapodiformes, though many other molluscs within the broader Neocoleoidea are also called squid despite not strictly fitting t ...

octopus An octopus ( : octopuses or octopodes, see below for variants) is a soft-bodied, eight- limbed mollusc of the order Octopoda (, ). The order consists of some 300 species and is grouped within the class Cephalopoda with squids, cuttle ...

cuttlefish Cuttlefish or cuttles are marine molluscs of the order Sepiida. They belong to the class Cephalopoda which also includes squid, octopuses, and nautiluses. Cuttlefish have a unique internal shell, the cuttlebone, which is used for control of ...

, ''

Nautilus The nautilus (, ) is a pelagic marine mollusc of the cephalopod family Nautilidae. The nautilus is the sole extant family of the superfamily Nautilaceae and of its smaller but near equal suborder, Nautilina. It comprises six living species in t ...

'', etc.

Etymology

Acetabulum literally means "a small saucer for

vinegar Vinegar is an aqueous solution of acetic acid and trace compounds that may include flavorings. Vinegar typically contains 5–8% acetic acid by volume. Usually, the acetic acid is produced by a double fermentation, converting simple sugars to et ...

". It is derived from two

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

words ''acetum'', meaning "vinegar", and ''-bulum'', a

suffix In linguistics, a suffix is an affix which is placed after the stem of a word. Common examples are case endings, which indicate the grammatical case of nouns, adjectives, and verb endings, which form the conjugation of verbs. Suffixes can carry ...

denoting "saucer" or "vessel" or "bowl". The name is used because of the saucer-like structure in the invertebrates.

Structure

Annelids

In leeches, acetabulum refers to the prominent posterior sucker at the extreme end of the body. In fact it forms a head-like structure, while the actual head is relatively small. It is a thick disc-shaped muscular system composed of circular, longitudinal and radial fibers.

Trematode

In flatworms, acetabulum is the ventral sucker situated towards the anterior part of the body, but behind the anterior oral sucker. It is composed of numerous spines for penetrating and gripping the host tissue. The location and structure of the acetabulum, and the pattern of the spine alignment are important diagnostic tool among trematode species.

Mollusc

Acetabulum in molluscs is a circular hollow opening on the

arms Arms or ARMS may refer to: *Arm or arms, the upper limbs of the body Arm, Arms, or ARMS may also refer to: People * Ida A. T. Arms (1856–1931), American missionary-educator, temperance leader Coat of arms or weapons *Armaments or weapons **Fi ...

. It occupies the central portion of the sucker and surrounded by a larger spherical cavity infundibulum. Both these structures are thick muscles, and the acetabulum is specifically composed of radial muscles. They are covered with

chitin Chitin ( C8 H13 O5 N)n ( ) is a long-chain polymer of ''N''-acetylglucosamine, an amide derivative of glucose. Chitin is probably the second most abundant polysaccharide in nature (behind only cellulose); an estimated 1 billion tons of chit ...

ous cuticle to make a protective surface.

Function

Acetabulum is essentially an organ of attachment. In annelids, it is used for adherence to the substratum during a looping locomotion. Annelid worms such as leeches move by repeated alternating extensions and shortenings of the body. This in turn is done by successive attachment and detachment of the oral sucker and the acetabulum. In flukes it is used for penetrating the mucosal wall of the

gastrointestinal tract The gastrointestinal tract (GI tract, digestive tract, alimentary canal) is the tract or passageway of the digestive system that leads from the mouth to the anus. The GI tract contains all the major organ (biology), organs of the digestive syste ...

for maintaining its parasitic habitat. It is sensory in nature consisting of type 2

sensory receptor Sensory neurons, also known as afferent neurons, are neurons in the nervous system, that convert a specific type of stimulus, via their receptors, into action potentials or graded potentials. This process is called sensory transduction. The cell ...

, which is a smooth bulb-like non-ciliated papilla.

Mollusc

Molluscans uses it for grasping substratum, catching prey and for locomotory accessory. The best studied acetabular activity is that of octopus. Octopus arms contains 200-300 independently controlled suckers that can grasp small objects and produce high adhesion forces on virtually any non-porous surface. This precise mechanism of high flexibility even has a potential mechanical applications in

robotics Robotics is an interdisciplinary branch of computer science and engineering. Robotics involves design, construction, operation, and use of robots. The goal of robotics is to design machines that can help and assist humans. Robotics integrat ...

. Each sucker is a

tactile sensor A tactile sensor is a device that measures information arising from physical interaction with its environment. Tactile sensors are generally modeled after the biological sense of cutaneous receptor, cutaneous touch which is capable of detecti ...

for detecting the surrounding. When the sucker attaches itself on an object, the infundibulum mainly provides adhesion while the central acetabulum is quite free. This provides greater suction on the flat surface; hence, making pressure incredibly low. This is why octopus grip is exceptionally firm. Then contraction of the radial muscle of the acetabulum causes detachment of the entire sucker.

References

External links

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Animal anatomy Animal morphology