Summary
The principal pancreatic islets of the teleost Scorpaena scropha are found ultrastructurally to contain four different kinds of parenchymal cells, viz. α 1-(= D), α 2-, β-and “agranular” cells. The β-cells show considerable variations in the shape of the secretory granules. A peculiar feature is that many of these granules are composed of fibrillar subunits, often in parallel arrangement. All β-granules are surrounded by membranes and between the membrane and the granule core there is a moderately wide electron lucent space. The electron density of the cytoplasm in the β-cells varies somewhat. The α 2-cells possess typical secretory granules with an electron dense core and a closely applied membrane. The secretory granules in the α 1-cells show also a closely applied membrane but a less dense core. Also in the α-cells the electron opacity of the cytoplasm varies. The “agranular” cells are mainly characterized by low cytoplasmic electron density, narrow cisterns of endoplasmic reticulum and sometimes a laminated Golgi complex. Small “immature” secretory granules are occasionally seen in the cytoplasm of these cells. The significance of the fibrillar β-granules remains obscure.
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This work was supported by grants from the Nordic Insulin Fund, the Town of Umeå, the Swedish Medical Research Council (Project No. B69-12X-718-04A), and by a postdoctoral fellowship from the United States Public Health Service.
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Boquist, L., Patent, G. The pancreatic islets of the teleost Scorpaena scropha . Z. Zellforsch. 115, 416–425 (1971). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00324943
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00324943