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Measurement of the pressure applied to the anterior region of the palate and incisor region of the mandible during thumb-sucking was carried out 3 female children. A polyethylene bag embedded with a high-sensitivity small pressure sensor was fixed on the ventral side of the thumb so that the baroreceptor could be interposed between the thumb and palate during thumb-sucking. The children were allowed to perform habitual thumb-sucking, and the resulting pressure signals were detected with a high-response dynamic strainmeter and recorded. Measured peak pressures were about 2-4.5 kgw, with large individual variation, and waveform patterns also varied. Characteristics of thumb-sucking habits and thumb-sucking pressure were related to malocclusion. Measurement of thumb-sucking pressure is believed to be effective for assessment of the qualitative relationship between thumb-sucking and malocclusion.

Cardiac myocytes have been shown to occur in the tunica media and adventitia at the region near the hepatic end of the portal vein of the mouse and rat, and have been studied by electron microscopy in the mouse portal vein. They measured 3-10 microns in breadth at their nuclear level, possessed centrally located nuclei, and were connected with each other by the intercalated disk. In these myocytes in the mouse portal vein, sarcoplasmic reticulum was represented by a rather simple and loose network of the anastomosing tubules. The membrane-bound granules, which closely resemble the atrial specific granules, were found in many of the mouse portal vein myocytes. Transverse tubules, 40-200 nm in diameter, were sometimes detectable at the Z line level. The nexus occupied about 3-5% of the whole junctional area between cardiac myocytes in the tunica media, whereas in the tunica adventitia the corresponding value was about 17%. Blood capillaries with fenestrated endothelium supplied the cardiac myocytes in the adventitia of mouse portal vein. The closest relationship between the adrenergic axon and portal vein cardiac myocytes was observed to be ca. 0.3 micron apart. The significance of these findings is discussed in relation to pulsations of the portal vein.

Electron microscopy of superior cervical ganglia of the mouse shows both pre- and postganglionic elements impinging upon the soma of principal neurons. The preganglionic cholinergic axon terminals are estimated to cover about 0.7% of the total surface area of the neuronal soma and are characterized by dense packing of synaptic vesicles which remain unchanged after the administration of 5-hydroxydopamine. Postganglionic elements are estimated to cover about 1.8% of the total surface of the neuronal soma. In many cases they contain small granular vesicles (with or without agranular reticulum), and are considered to be represented in part by vesiculated segments of the dendrite and in part by recurrent axon collaterals of the principal neuron. These postganglionic elements usually make puncta adhaerentes, but occasionally an efferent synapse, on the soma of principal neurons in the ganglion. Evidence is presented which suggests that the soma, in turn, is capable of influencing the perisomal, postganglionic elements through a somatic efferent synapse.

Electron microscopy of the cardiac ganglion from normal and bilaterally vagotomized turtles revealed the occurrence of reciprocal synapses between the postganglionic cholinergic axon and the granule-containing cell (adrenergic interneuron). In the synaptic zone polarized from cholinergic to adrenergic elements, agranular intraaxonal vesicles are concentrated toward the presynaptic membrane, but no granular vesicles of the adrenergic interneuron are gathered on the postsynaptic side. In the synaptic zone polarized from adrenergic to cholinergic elements, granular vesicles are accumulated beneath the presynaptic membrane but no vesicles are associated with the postsynaptic axolemma. The membrane thickening is asymmetrical, and larger on the presynaptic than the postsynaptic side in both cases of polarization at reciprocal synapses. The intercellular cleft at the adrenergic interneuron to cholinergic axon synapse is slightly wider than that at the synapse with opposite polarity. These findings appear to provide a basis for a disinhibition device incorporated within the inhibitory feedback system of the ganglion.

Nerve segments approximately 7 mm long were excised from the predegenerated sciatic nerves of mice, and treated 5 times by repetitive freezing and thawing to kill the Schwann cells. Such treated nerve segments were grafted into the original places so as to be in contact with the proximal stumps. The animals were sacrificed 1, 2, 3, 5, 7 and 10 days after the grafting. The grafts were examined by electron microscopy in the middle part of the graft, i.e. 3-4 mm distal to the proximal end and/or near the proximal and distal ends of the graft. In other instances, the predegenerated nerve segments were minced with a razor blade after repetitive freezing and thawing. Such minced nerves were placed in contact with the proximal stumps of the same nerves. The animals were sacrificed 10 days after the grafting. Within 1-2 days after grafting, the dead Schwann cells had disintegrated into fragments. They were then gradually phagocytosed by macrophages. The basal laminae of Schwann cells, which were not attacked by macrophages, remained as empty tubes (basal lamina scaffolds). In the grafts we examined, no Schwann cells survived the freezing and thawing process. The regenerating axons always grew out through such basal lamina scaffolds, being in contact with the inner surface of the basal lamina (i.e. the side originally facing the Schwann cell plasma membrane). No axons were found outside of the scaffolds. One to two days after grafting, the regenerating axons were not associated with Schwann cells, but after 5-7 days they were accompanied by Schwann cells which were presumed to be migrating along axons from the proximal stumps. Ten days after grafting, proliferating Schwann cells observed in the middle part of the grafts had begun to sort out axons. In the grafts of minced nerves, the fragmented basal laminae of the Schwann cells re-arranged themselves into thicker strands or small aggregations of basal laminae. The regenerating axons, without exception, attached to one side of such modified basal laminae. Collagen fibrils were in contact with the other side, indicating that these modified basal laminae had the same polarity in terms of cell attachment as seen in the ordinary basal laminae of the scaffolds.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)

The dermal melanocytes in the lesions of nevus of Ito and Mongolian spot were shown to possess the extracellular sheath composed of both fine filaments and granules (2-5 nm in diameter). In the case of nevus of Ito, the granular component appeared to predominate in the shealth, which measured up to 3 micrometers in width and was estimated to cover about 97% of the total surface of dermal melanocytes. No ultrastructural changes were appreciable on the melanocyte shealth in nevus of Ito according to the difference in the age of patients (39 and 64 years), or in the lasting period of the dermal melanocytosis. By contrast, the melanocyte sheath in the case of Mongolian spot was much less developed than in nevus of Ito, predominantly filamentous in texture, and showed a marked decline with advance of the age of infants (from 2 mo to 6 yr). Many of the dermal melanocytes in Mongolian spot showed a partial disruption of their cytolemma, resulting in discharges of melanosomes free into the connective tissue matrix. Significance of these findings was discussed in relation to the differtial fate of melanocytes within the human dermis.

The nonspecific esterase activity was investigated at the electron microscopic level, by means of azo dye technique applied to the duodenal, jejunal and ileal mucosae of living rats. After perfusion of a medium containing 1-naphthyl acetate and hexazonium pararosaniline into the lumen of the small intestine, the enzyme reaction product of electron opaque grains (50-100nm in diameter) was localized on the limiting membrane of microvilli of epithelial cells, and on the vesicles and the granular endoplasmic reticulum in the apical cytoplasm of epithelial cells. When the medium was perfused intravascularly, electron opaque grains were localized on the basal cell membrane and the basal lamina of epithelial cells as well as on the vesicles present in the basal cytoplasm of epithelial cells. Localizations of the esterase activity were essentially alike whether naphthyl propionate or butyrate was used as a substrate. The esterase activity in the duodenal and jejunal mucosae was higher than that in the ileal mucosa, judging from the results of inhibition test and reactivation test.

The surface of 4 granule-containing cells, in a cluster within the rat superior cervical ganglion, was studied by a serial sampling technique for electron microscopy. The result shows that all the 4 cells receive one, or three afferent synaptic boutons from the preganglionic fibers impinging upon their somata, and a somatic efferent synapse exists at two locations on each soma of the 2 of these cells. The postsynaptic element of the efferent synapse is observed to be represented by non-vesiculated and vesiculated segments of dendrites, soma and a possible axon collateral of the adrenergic principal neuron of the ganglion. There is a remarkably constant development of the attachment plaque between the granule-containing cells themselves, representing 1.7–2.3% of surface area for each cell. The surface area exposed to the extracellular space (covered only by a basal lamina) varies from 0.1 to 2.3% of the total perikaryal surface of the 4 cells. A tendency is noted that those cells without efferent synapses possess a more extensive area exposed to extracellular space than those forming somatic efferent synapse to the postganglionic elements.

To distinguish axons from Schwann cell processes in the denervated (Büngner's bands) and reinnervated peripheral nerves, the nearest-neighbor distance of intermediate filaments (NND) was measured in axons and Schwann cells from denervated and subsequent regenerating peripheral nerves. It was revealed that the NND was much larger in regenerating axons (41.9 +/- 14.1 nm) than in Schwann cell processes (23.1 +/- 7.1 nm in regeneration and 19.7 +/- 5.8 nm in denervation). In addition, the NND was also measured in the normal adult and developing peripheral nerves, and it became clear that in all cases the NND in axons (29.0-41.9 nm) was larger than in Schwann cells (19.7-23.1 nm). Thus, it can be generally considered that the NND is larger in axons than in Schwann cells. This fact can be used for the distinction between axons and Schwann cell processes, when the latter have a profile similar to that of the former as in Büngner's bands and in the regenerating nerves.

Peculiar myelin figures were abundantly found in some basal-granulated cells including S, D1 and I cells in human Brunner's glands. Intense acid phosphatase activity was found in the periphery of the myelin figures, indicating that they were secondary lysosomes or residual bodies. The acid phosphatase activity was also found in some secretory granules. There were some secretory granules which were partly membranous in content, suggesting the initial stage of their degradation into myelin figures. There were also features indicating the fusion of secretory granules with the myelin figures. All these findings suggest that the myelin figures are the products of lysosomal degradation of secretory granules. The rate of occurrence of basal-granulated cells containing myelin figures in Brunner's glands tended to be higher in subjects with duodenal ulcer than in cases of gastric cancer or ulcer.

Electron microscopy of serial sections revealed the occurrence of long non-myelinated segments in myelinated, presumably sensory axons running in the left atrial endocardium of normal adult dogs. Four such non-myelinated segments were analysed in three myelinated axons. They varied from 20 to 150 microns in length, and differed from nodes of Ranvier in being invested by Schwann cells in the manner of unmyelinated nerve fibers. Short non-myelinated portions (20-25 microns long) were associated with a single Schwann cell, whereas the longest such segment (150 microns) had five. The non-myelinated axonal segments were non-varicose and similar in diameter (1.2-3.0 microns) to adjacent myelinated segments, which had myelin sheaths 6-25 lamellae thick. The cytoplasm of the non-myelinated axonal segments contained numerous neurofilaments and microtubules, some mitochondria and smooth endoplasmic reticulum. The short non-myelinated segments were enclosed by perineurium, whereas the long non-myelinated segment was devoid of perineurium at its mid-portion; instead fibroblast-like cells made a loose boundary around the axon at this level. The significance of these non-myelinated segments was discussed with special emphasis on the question of whether they result from focal degeneration of the myelin sheath (demyelination) or are generally present in the preterminal regions of some axons.

Electron microscopy of the rat cardiac ganglion shows occurrence of small granule-containing cells that form reciprocal synaptic junctions with cholinergic terminals. At the synaptic junctions which are from axon to granule-containing cell, the intraaxonal vesicles are clustered against the junctional axolemma, but dense-cored vesicles in the postsynaptic cell do not cluster towards the membrane densities in these synapses. By contrast, the synaptic zone polarized in the opposite direction shows an absence of axonal vesicles in close proximity to the postsynaptic axolemma, but there is a marked aggregation of dense-cored vesicles towards the presynaptic specializations of granule-containing cells. The synaptic zones are multifocal rather than bifocal, and the minimal distance separating each synaptic zone is about 0.3 mu. These findings may indicate that cholinergic excitation of some or all granule-containing cells causes a reciprocal inhibition of one or more cholinergic terminals.

The sino-auricular nodal tissue of the heart of the loach (Misgurnus anguillicaudatus, Cantor) contains (1) myocardial cells receiving rich innervation, (2) isolated nerve cells, and (3) cardiac internuncial cells which are interposed between autonomic axon terminals and myocardial cells. Structural specializations are noted at the synapse between the autonomic axon and the myocardial cell, as well as at the axon-internuncial cell synapse. Between the internuncial cell and the myocardial cell, attachment plaques are present with a patchy locus of a close junction, wherein the extracellular space appears to be almost obliterated. Estimations were made of the surface areas of an internuncial cell body and a nerve cell body as revealed by serial sampling of the tissue at about 0.5 μ intervals. The results show that for an internuncial cell body followed over a length of 15 μ, 52.5% of its total surface is covered by vesiculated axons, 3.8% by non-vesiculated axons, 12.2% by myocardial cells, and 3.1% by Schwann cell processes; for a nerve cell body followed over a length of 16 μ, only 1.8% is covered by vesiculated axons, 0.5% by non-vesiculated axons, nil by myocardial cells, and 96.4% by a satellite cell and its processes. It is considered that the internuncial cell represents a specialized cell type in the nodal tissue of the fish heart, playing a role in modulating the autonomic nerve impulses before they are transmitted to the effector myocardial cells.