Question

Chloragogen cells are involved in
(a) Digestion
(b) Excretion of water
(c) Respiration
(d) Fat storage

Answer 1

Hint: Chloragogen cells are also known as ‘y’ cells containing yellow colour granules due to the presence of waste carried from capillaries. These cells are present in the digestive system and act as digestive glands in Annelida.

Complete step by step answer:
Chloragogen cells are found in the intestine & the dorsal blood vessels in large numbers.
- Derived from the peritoneum/coelomic epithelium of the alimentary canal.
- These cells are equivalent to liver helps in storage and synthesis of glycogen and fats.
- These cells are present in the lining of intestine and collect ammonia or urea and deposits in blood or take directly to the nephrostome.
So, the correct answer is, ‘(d) Fat storage.’

Additional Information:
- The fundamental unit of excretory system in annelids is nephridia which present two pairs of nephridia in each body segment. This helps in excretion of water, mineral, salts and nitrogenous wastes in the form of urea.
- Nepherida is segmentally arranged coiled tubules of ectodermal origin which is ciliated internally & developed as inpushings/invaginations from the ectoderm so that they project into the coelom. - Nepherida communicate on one hand with exterior through laterally placed small apertures called nephridiopores.
- Chloragogen cells function in extraction by converting amino acid to urea and ammonia.
- These cells also travel through the coelom to repair wounds.

Note:
- Chloragogen cells take up nitrogenous waste products from the blood capillaries of the gut & deposited as yellow granules(guanin) in their cytoplasm. These cells are also concerned with
- Deamination of proteins
- Formation of ammonia
- Synthesis of urea
Therefore, they are as the vital intermediary in metabolism of earthworms as the liver in vertebrates.