Fig. 3
Morphological and molecular analysis of the internal genitalia of Masc-R females homozygous for BmdsxF mutation. Homozygous mutation in BmdsxF promoted female to male sex reversal in the internal genitalia of Masc-R females. (A, B) Expression levels of BmdsxM (a) and BmdsxF (b) in animals with the indicated genotype were quantified by qRT-PCR. Expression levels of BmMaelstrom (c) and BmAly (d), both of which are involved in spermatogenesis, were also quantified by qRT-PCR to evaluate the effect of BmdsxF knockout on gonadal and germ cell sexual development in Masc-R/+ females. Error bars indicate standard deviation. * indicates a significant difference, as determined by Welch’s t-test. e–g Morphological analysis of the internal genitalia in Masc-R female heterozygous for BmdsxFΔ85 (e), Masc-R female homozygous for BmdsxFΔ85 (f), and normal male animals (g). e, egg; mg, mucous gland; ov, oviduct; sp., spermatheca; sr, seminal receptacle; tl, testis-like tissue; ag, accessory gland; ed., ejaculatory duct; sv, seminal vesicle; t, testis; vd, vas deferens. h–j High magnification images showing testis-like tissues and testes in Masc-R female heterozygous for BmdsxFΔ85 (h), Masc-R female homozygous for BmdsxFΔ85 (i), and normal male animals (j). The dotted line indicates the testis-like tissues