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Über den Feinbau von Marksträngen und Markschläuchen im Ovar juveniler und geschlechtsreifer Schweine (Sus scrofa L.)

On the fine structure of medullary cords in the ovary of immature and mature sows

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Summary

Medullary cords in the ovary of immature and mature sows have been investigated with the electron microscope.

  1. 1)

    In the ovary of immature animals there are both cords and tubes containing colloid or not.

a)Tubes containing colloid have a single layer of columnar epithelium, sometimes a pseudostratified columnar epithelium. Four types of cells are discernible.

Cells with cilia have a cleft nucleus, a light cytoplasm, numerous ribosomes, some rough surfaced ER and a scarcely developed golgi apparatus. On the cell surface there are cilia of the 9+2 type and microvilli.

Main cells appear as “dark” or “light” cells according to their contents of ribosomes and filamentous material. They have an apical zone of light cytoplasm which gives rise to club-shaped microvilli. There are hints for colloid formation from the constricting vesicle like tips of microvilli and for colloid reabsorption.

A third type of cell corresponds to the main cell in medullary cords.

Cells of a fourth type which are characterized by voluminous mitochondria and a pycnotic like nucleus occur in tubes and cords. Perhaps they are fading primordial germ cells.

The colloid consists of a dense homogeneous material containing particles of various density which are perhaps remnants of club-shaped microvilli. b)Cell types in medullary tubes without colloid resemble those in tubes containing colloid. The main cells, however, lack the light apices of cytoplasm. c)Medullary cords are epithelial formations of cuboidal or polygonal cells having round shaped nuclei, numerous mitochondria with a sometimes tubulus-like inner structure, a well developed rough surfaced ER and golgi apparatus, lipid droplets and lysosomal structures. Electron dense granules arise from the golgi apparatus accumulating predominantly in the basal parts of the cells. d)Among the interstitial connective tissue there are many capillaries and nerves having a minimal distance of 1 μm from the nearest epithelial cell. 2)Mature sows only show medullary tubes consisting of a cuboidal or columnar, sometimes pseudostratified, epithelium. The tubes contain no colloid. There is one main type of cell resembling that of immature medullary cords. However, lipid droplets, granules and dense bodies have increased in number. Besides there are some degenerating cells. 3)The discussion is based on the homology of medullary cord cells with granulosa and Sertoli cells. Steroid production in granulosa and Sertoli cells has been demonstrated by biochemical and partly histochemical methods. Because of morphological similarities between granulosa cells and main cells of mature medullary cords it is assumed that both have a similar function.

Zusammenfassung

Markschläuche und Markstränge im Ovar juveniler und geschlechtsreifer Schweine wurden elektronenmikroskopisch untersucht.

  1. 1.

    Im Ovar juveniler Tiere sind Markschläuche mit und ohne Kolloid sowie Markstränge ausgebildet.

a)Markschläuche mit kolloidalem Inhalt sind aus einem hochprismatischen einreihigen, stellenweise auch zweireihigen Epithel aufgebaut. Vier Zelltypen sind zu unterscheiden.

Flimmerzellen verfügen über einen zerklüfteten Kern, ein helles Cytoplasma, zahlreiche Ribosomen, wenig granuläres ER, einen spärlich entwickelten Golgiapparat, Kinozilien (9+2 Typ) und zahlreiche Mikrovilli.

Hauptzellen treten je nach Ribosomen- und Filamentgehalt in einer „hellen“ und einer „dunklen“ Variante auf. Ein organellenarmer, heller Apex, ist mit keulenförmigen Mikrovilli besetzt. Möglicherweise wird aus den sich abschnürenden blasigen Enden der Mikrovilli gebildetes Kolloid durch Pinocytose rückresorbiert und zum Golgifeld transportiert.

Ein dritter Zelltyp entspricht dem Hauptzelltyp der Markstränge.

Zellen eines vierten Typs, durch voluminöse Mitochondrien und einen pyknotischen Kern charakterisiert, kommen in Marksträngen und -schlauchen vor. Es handelt sich vielleicht um zugrundegehende primordiale Geschlechtszellen.

Im Kolloid schwimmen Partikel unterschiedlicher Dichte, wahrscheinlich Abbauprodukte losgelöster Mikrovilli. b)Die Zelltypen in Markschläuchen ohne Kolloid sind die gleichen wie in Markschläuchen mit kolloidalem Inhalt. Den Hauptzellen fehlt die helle apikale Cytoplasmakuppe. c)Markstränge sind epitheliale Verbände isoprismatischer oder polygonaler Zellen, die rundliche, wenig eingebuchtete Kerne, zahlreiche Mitochondrien mit teilweise tubulusartiger Innenstruktur, ein ausgedehntes granuläres ER, einen gut entwickelten Golgiapparat, Lipideinschlüsse und lysosomenähnliche Strukturen besitzen. d)Im Interstitium findet man neben verschiedenen Bindegewebszellen zahlreiche Kapillaren mit ungefenstertem Endothel und Nerven, die von den Epithelbasen mindestens 1 μm entfernt sind. 2.Bei geschlechtsreifen Tieren gibt es nur noch Markschläuche mit isooder hochprismatischem, meist ein-, selten zweireihigem Epithel ohne Kolloid und einen Hauptzelltyp, der dem in Marksträngen juveniler Tiere vorkommenden sehr ähnlich ist. Die Zahl der Lipideinschlüsse sowie der Granula und dense bodies hat jedoch erheblich zugenommen. Daneben findet man einzelne zugrunde gehende Zellelemente. 3.Die Funktion der Markstrangzellen wird auf dem Hintergrund der entwicklungsgeschichtlichen Homologie und der morphologischen Ähnlichkeit mit Granulosazellen diskutiert.

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  1. Anatomisches Institut der Universität Kiel, Deutschland

    Klaus Unsicker

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Herrn Prof. Bargmann zum 65. Geburtstag gewidmet.

Die Untersuchung wurde mit Hilfe der Deutschen Forschungsgemeinschaft durchgeführt.

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Unsicker, K. Über den Feinbau von Marksträngen und Markschläuchen im Ovar juveniler und geschlechtsreifer Schweine (Sus scrofa L.). Z. Zellforsch. 114, 344–364 (1971). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00331461

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