Summary
The ultrastructure of conjunctival nerve fibres was studied in control material from two species of monkey. Nerve fibres reached the conjunctiva either in small nerves or in the adventitia of arterioles. A few myelinated nerve fibres were found within the nerves but the great majority of their fibres were unmyelinated. Bundles of unmyelinated nerve fibres were found in the interstices of the lamina propria up to the epithelial basement membrane and nerve fibres were traced into the epithelium. Other unmyelinated nerve fibre bundles lay adjacent to the walls of capillaries. Nerve fibre terminals exhibited varicosities and three types of terminals were recognised; those having varicosities packed with mitochondria, those having varicosities containing vesicles without any small granules and those having varicosities with vesicles, some with small granules.
Following experimental nerve lesions induced changes were observed in the nerve fibres, and from these changes it was determined that nerve fibres from three sources were present in the conjunctiva. Nerves and interstitial nerve fibre bundles contained ophthalmic and pterygopalatine nerve fibres, from which the epithelium was supplied. Arteriolar nerve fibre bundles contained superior cervical and pterygopalatine nerve fibres which were joined by ophthalmic nerve fibres in capillary nerve fibre bundles.
The combined results of electron-microscopy of control and experimental material suggested that nerve fibres from different sources innervating the conjunctiva had ultrastructurally distinct terminals.
Zusammenfassung
An Kontrollmaterial von zwei Affenarten wurde die Feinstruktur conjunctivaler Nervenfasern studiert. Die Nervenfasern erreichten die Conjunctiva entweder in kleinen Nerven oder in der Adventitia von Arteriolen. In den Nerven wurden einige myelinisierte Fasern gefunden, die überwiegende Mehrzahl der Fasern war jedoch unmyelinisiert. Bündel von unmyelinisierten Nervenfasern fanden sich im Interstitium der Lamina propria bis hin zur epithelialen Basalmembran. Einzelne Nervenfasern ließen sich bis in das Epithel verfolgen. Andere unmyelinisierte Nervenfaserbündel lagen unmittelbar neben der Wand von Capillaren. Die Nervenfaserendigungen zeigten Anschwellungen. Dabei ließen sich drei Arten von Endigungen unterscheiden, und zwar solche, deren Anschwellungen mit Mitochondrien angefüllt waren, solche, deren Anschwellungen Vesikel ohne jegliche kleine Granula enthielten, und solche mit Anschwellungen, in deren Vesikel sich z.T. kleine Granula fanden.
Nach experimenteller Nervenschädigung wurden in den Nervenfasern sekundäre Veränderungen beobachtet. Anhand dieser Veränderungen war es möglich festzustellen, daß in der Conjunctiva Nervenfasern von drei verschiedenen Quellen vorhanden sind. Die Nerven und interstitiellen Nervenfaserbündel enthielten Fasern vom Nervus ophthalmicus und Nervus pterygopalatinus und versorgten das Epithel. Die arteriolären Nervenfaserbündel enthielten Fasern ans dem Nervus cervicalis superior und dem Nervus pterygopalatinus, die in den Nervenfaserbündeln der Capillaren von Fasern aus dem Nervus ophthalmicus ergänzt wurden.
Die kombinierten Ergebnisse von elektronenmikroskopischen Untersuchungen an Experimentaltieren und Kontrollmaterial legte die Vermutung nahe, daß die von verschiedenen Quellen stammenden Nervenfasern für die Versorgung der Conjunctiva ultrastrukturell unterschiedliche Endigungen haben.
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Macintosh, S.R. The innervation of the conjunctiva in monkeys. Albrecht von Graefes Arch. Klin. Ophthalmol. 192, 105–116 (1974). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00410697
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00410697