Fig. 5. Time-course immunohistochemical analysis of the ventral paired medial neurosecretory cells in the MTGM of fifth-instar R. prolixus. Immunohistochemical analysis was conducted on a group of animals that were either fed for 20 min on rabbit's blood (hatched bars) or not fed (white bars). (A–G) PRXamide-like immunoreactivity (PRXa-LI) was examined at 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 24 and 48 h post feeding, respectively. (H) Confocal image of the ventral paired median neurosecretory cells showing the labelling scheme utilized in A–G. Scale bar, 50 µm. *PRXa-LI that differs significantly from controls (unfed) (P<0.05, ANOVA and Tukey post-test).