Effects of laser irradiation on the structure and function of cilia and flagella

Actively beating flagella of echinoderm spermatozoa and of Crithidia oncopelti were irradiated with a single pulse from a ruby laser microbeam. The results were recorded photographically. Lateral cilia of the gill of Elliptio were similarly irradiated, and the irradiated cilia were examined by electron microscopy. The matrix of irradiated regions has a mottled, coagulated appearance. The matrix and central pair are more easily damaged than the outer doublets. Flagella of echinoderm spermatozoa apparently require their basal end for motility, while those of C.oncopelti apparently need neither their base nor their tip.