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The ultrastructural basis for the identification of cell types in the pancreatic islets I. Guinea pig

Zeitschrift für Zellforschung und Mikroskopische Anatomie volume 67, pages 533–546 (1965)Cite this article

Summary

The pancreatic islets of the guinea pig have been studied by light and electron microscopy. The B granules in glutaraldehyde-fixed tissue often are cup-shaped with an indentation visible on one side of the granule. Phosphotungstic acid hematoxylin (PTAH) positive cells have been characterized by electron microscopy as three subtypes based on the size of the secretory granules. Aa cells are the most common and have secretory granules around 200 mμ in diameter. Ab cells have large secretory granules around 300 mμ in diameter and are relatively infrequent. Ac cells are the least common and have small (160 mμ) granules. Characteristic D cells are identifiable by electron microscopy and, on the basis of the subsequent study (Munger, Caramia, and Lacy, 1965), are identified as the silver positive cells observed by light microscopy.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Departments of Anatomy and Pathology, and the Beaumont-May Institute of Neurology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri, USA

    Felice Caramia,  Bryce L. Munger & Paul E. Lacy

  2. Dept. of Anatomy, University of Chicago, 1025 East, 57th Street, 60637, Chicago, Illinois, USA

    Bryce L. Munger

  3. Institute of General Pathology, University of Perugia, Italy

    Felice Caramia

Authors
  1. Felice Caramia
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  2. Bryce L. Munger
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  3. Paul E. Lacy
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Additional information

This investigation was supported in part by United States Public Health Service research grants GM-10102 and GM-03784 from the Institute of General Medical Sciences, and AM-01226 from the Institute of Arthritis and Metabolic Diseases.-The authors wish to acknowledge the valuable technical assistance of Mrs. Aileen Sevier and Mrs. Lidia Donohue.

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Caramia, F., Munger, B.L. & Lacy, P.E. The ultrastructural basis for the identification of cell types in the pancreatic islets I. Guinea pig. Zeitschrift für Zellforschung 67, 533–546 (1965). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00342585

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00342585

Keywords

  • Electron Microscopy
  • Light Microscopy
  • Hematoxylin
  • Pancreatic Islet
  • Secretory Granule