Skip to main content

Thank you for visiting nature.com. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility mode in Internet Explorer). In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles and JavaScript.

  • Letter
  • Published:

Conversion of Glycogen to Sorbitol and Glycerol in the Diapause Egg of the Bombyx Silkworm

Abstract

IN the course of biochemical studies1 on the embryonic diapause of the Bombyx silkworm, it has been shown that the glycogen content of the egg decreases markedly at the onset of diapause and reaches the lowest level at about thirty days after oviposition. When diapause is broken by cold treatment, glycogen increases progressively even at low temperature and regains the initial level almost completely. Pursuing the fate of glycogen during the diapause period, I have found that it is not consumed as an energy source, but it is converted to other substances including the following: sugars and their polymers, fat, lactic acid, gluconic acid and other organic acids such as Krebs cycle members, phosphoric esters and amino-acids.

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution

Access options

Buy this article

Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Chino, H., Embryologia (in the press).

  2. Lambert, Marguerite, and Neish, A. C., Can. J. Research, 28B, 83 (1950). Cited in “Methods of Biochemical Analysis”, 3 (Interscience Pub., N.Y., 1956).

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

CHINO, H. Conversion of Glycogen to Sorbitol and Glycerol in the Diapause Egg of the Bombyx Silkworm. Nature 180, 606–607 (1957). https://doi.org/10.1038/180606b0

Download citation

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/180606b0

This article is cited by

Comments

By submitting a comment you agree to abide by our Terms and Community Guidelines. If you find something abusive or that does not comply with our terms or guidelines please flag it as inappropriate.

Search

Quick links

Nature Briefing

Sign up for the Nature Briefing newsletter — what matters in science, free to your inbox daily.

Get the most important science stories of the day, free in your inbox. Sign up for Nature Briefing