Summary
Spindle or needle-shaped crystalloids are observed in Sertoli cells of the intersex and experimental cryptorchid swine in the light and electron microscopes. Small crystalloids are also observed in Sertoli cells of the normal swine only by electron microscopy. These crystalloids consist of fine filaments. The filaments are about 5 nm in diameter and arranged parallel to the long axis of the crystalloid. In cross sections of the crystalloid, the close packing of the filaments shows hexagonal arrays. The interfilamentous distance is about 5 nm. In all animals examined, bundles of short filaments, which are 5 nm in diameter, are observed in the basal part of the Sertoli cells. Ultrastructural similarities among the crystalloids, the bundles of fine filaments, and the filamentous layer in the junctional specialization of the Sertoli cell are shown. These morphological similarities suggest that the crystalloids are formed by the aggregation of the bundles in the Sertoli cells of azoospermic testes.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Bawa, S. R.: Fine Structure of the Sertoli cell of the human testis. J. Ultrastruct. Res. 9, 459–474 (1963)
Bennett, H. S., Luft, J. H.: s-Collidine as a basis for buffering fixatives. J. biophys. bioehem. Cytol. 6, 113–114 (1959)
Brökelmann, J.: Surface modification of Sertoli cells at various stages of spermatogenesis in the rat. An electron microscope study. Anat. Rec. 139, 211 (1961)
Brökelmann, J.: Fine structure of germ cells and Sertoli cells during the cycle of the seminiferous epithelium in the rat. Z. Zellforsch. 59, 820–850 (1963)
Burgos, M. H., Fawcett, D. W.: Studies on the fine structure of the mammalian testis. I. Differentiation of the spermatid in the cat (Felis domestica). J. biophys. bioehem. Cytol. 1, 287–300 (1955)
Cohrs, P.: Lehrbuch der speziellen pathologischen Anatomie der Haustiere, Teil II, 971–974. Stuttgart: Gustav Fischer 1970
Dym, M.: The fine structure of the monkey (Macaca) Sertoli cell and its role in maintaining the blood-testis barrier. Anat. Rec. 175, 639–656 (1973)
Dym, M., Fawcett, D. W.: The blood-testis barrier in the rat and the physiological compartmentation of the seminiferous epithelium. Biol. Reprod. 3, 308–326 (1970)
Fawcett, D. W., Leak, L. V., Heidger, P. M.: Electron microscopic observations on the structural components of the blood-testis barrier. J. Reprod. Fertil., Suppl. 10, 105–122 (1970)
Flickinger, C., Fawcett, D. W.: The junctional specializations of Sertoli cells in the seminiferous epithelium. Anat. Rec. 158, 207–222 (1967)
Kretser, D. M. de: The fine structure of the immature human testis in hypogonadotrophic hypogonadism. Virchows Arch. Abt. B 1, 283–296 (1968)
Lubarsch, O.: Über das Vorkommen krystallinischer und krystalloider Bildungen in den Zellen des menschlichen Hodens. Virchows Arch. path. Anat. 145, 316–338 (1896)
Luft, J. H.: Improvements in epoxy resin embedding methods. J. biophys. biochem. Cytol. 9, 409–414 (1961)
Nagano, T.: Some observations on the fine structure of the Sertoli cell in the human testis. Z. Zellforsch. 73, 89–106 (1966)
Nagano, T.: Fine structural relation between the Sertoli cell and the differentiating spermatid in the human testis. Z. Zellforsch. 89, 39–43 (1968)
Nicander, L.: Some ultrastructural features of mammalian Sertoli cells. J. Ultrastruct. Res. 8, 190–191 (1963)
Nicander, L.: An electron microscopical study of cell contacts in the seminiferous tubules of some mammals. Z. Zellforsch. 83, 375–397 (1967)
Reinke, F.: Beiträge zur Histologie des Menschen. Arch. mikr. Anat. 47, 34–44 (1896)
Reynolds, E. S.: The use of lead citrate at high pH as in electron-opaque stain in electron microscopy. J. Cell Biol. 17, 208–212 (1963)
Sohval, A. R., Suzuki, Y., Gabrilove, J. L.: Ultrastructure of crystalloids in spermatogonia and Sertoli cells of normal human testis. J. Ultrastruct. Res. 34, 83–102 (1971)
Watson, M. L.: Staining of tissue sections for electron microscopy with heavy metals. J. biophys. biochem. Cytol. 4, 475–478 (1958)
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Additional information
The author gratefully acknowledges the helpful guidance of Professor Toshio Nagano of Chiba University during the course of the study and his critical reading of the manuscript. He also thanks Professor Teru Hayashi of Illinois Institute of Technology for his assistance in preparing the manuscript.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Toyama, Y. Ultrastructural study of crystalloids in Sertoli cells of the normal, intersex and experimental cryptorchid swine. Cell Tissue Res. 158, 205–213 (1975). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00219961
Received:
Revised:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00219961