Ultrastructure of the germ cells in the testis of matrinxã, Brycon cephalus (Teleostei, Characidae).

This study describes at ultrastructural level the germ cells in the testis of matrinxã (Brycon cephalus) raised in captivity. The specimens 'matrinxã' were maintained in four breeding tanks of 200 m(2), at the Aquaculture Research Center at Vale do Ribeira-CEPAR, from Fishery Institute, in Pariquera-Açu City, São Paulo, Brazil. The samples were collected from March 1994 to February 1996. The testis has been classified as tubular unrestricted spermatogonial type, in which four stages of germ cells can be distinguished as follows: spermatogonia, spermatocytes (primary and secondary); spermatids and spermatozoa.