Summary
Preterminal and terminal vegetative nerve fibres of the ductus deferens of rats and mice were studied with the freeze-etching technique. The ultrastructure of the axons in freeze-fractured and etched replicas is in agreement with that obtained by conventional electron microscopical techniques. An increase in the number of membrane-bound particles was observed in the terminal region of the (+)-side of the axolemma. These particles, wich have a diameter of 6–10 nm, tend to aggregate in either small or large, plaque-like accumulations at parts of the axolemmata, which are free from Schwann cells and at myoneural junctions. The possible function of these particle-aggregations is discussed. Fusions of synaptic vesicles with the terminal axolemma in the form of a conventional exocytotic process could not be detected in this material.
Zusammenfassung
Präterminale und terminale vegetative Nervenfasern aus dem Ductus deferens von Ratten und Mäusen wurden mit Hilfe der Gefrierätztechnik untersucht. Die Ultrastruktur der Axone in den Abdrücken stimmt mit dem Bild aus konventionell gewonnenen Präparationen im wesentlichen überein. Die Untersuchung ergab eine Zunahme membrangebundener Partikel in terminalen Abschnitten an der (+)-Seite des Axolemms. An freien Axolemmbereichen sowie an myoneuralen Kontakten treten diese Partikel, die einen Durchmesser zwischen 6–10 nm besitzen, in Form kleinflächiger Ansammlungen oder in größeren, plaqueförmigen Aggregationen auf. Membranfusionen von synaptischen Vesikeln mit dem terminalen Axolemm im Sinne eines herkömmlichen Exozytosevorganges konnten im untersuchten Material nicht nachgewiesen werden.
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Frl. P. Dierkes und Frl. G. Marnitz sei für die technische Assistenz gedankt.
Mit Unterstützung durch den SFB 114 (Bionach).
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Dermietzel, R., Brettschneider, H. Eine Untersuchung peripherer vegetativer Nervenfasern des Ductus deferens mit Hilfe der Gefrierätztechnik. Z.Zellforsch 137, 111–124 (1973). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00307052
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00307052