Definition:
Slender tubules attached to the insect's alimentary canal, at the point where the midgut and hindgut are joined. The Malpighian tubules function as an excretory system and aid in osmoregulation. The tubules empty into the alimentary canal, and remove nitrogenous wastes from the insect's body.
These structures were named for an Italian anatomist named Marcello Malpighi, who discovered the tubules in the seventeenth century.
See also: The Insect Excretory System
