Karyotype analysis of Ascaris lumbricoides var. suum. Male and female pachytene nuclei by 3-D reconstruction from electron microscopy of serial sections.

Twelve synaptonemal complexes are present in both oocyte and spermatocyte pachytene nuclei of Ascaris lumbricoides var. suum, as determined by 3-D reconstruction of the nuclear contents from electron microscropy of serial sections and therefore, n=12 in the strain of Ascaris described here. In the female the heterochromatic end of each synaptonemal complex is attached to the nuclear envelope and the other end is free in the nucleoplasm. In the male neither end of the synaptonemal complex is attached, but there is a heterochromatic knob at one end of each complex. Five additional large heterochromatic masses are present in the spermatocyte nucleus and these may be the sex chromosomes described by earlier workers.