TY - JOUR
T1 - Ultrastructure of the nonciliated bronchiolar epithelial (clara) cell of mammalian lung
T2 - II. A comparison of horse, steer, sheep, dog, and cat
AU - Plopper, Charles
AU - Mariassy, Andrew T.
AU - Hill, Lila H.
PY - 1980/1/1
Y1 - 1980/1/1
N2 - Two morphologic characteristics have been used to define the nonciliated bronchiolar epithelial cell: abundant agranular endoplasmic reticulum (AER) and membrane-bound ovoid granules. To assess the ultrastructural homogeneity of this cell type in the lungs of large domestic mammals used as experimental models in pulmonary research, we evaluated lungs of horse, steer, sheep, dog, and cat. Bronchioles of known anatomic location were examined by electron microscopy following fixation by airway infusion at standard pressure and processing by selective embedding techniques. Nonciliated bronchiolar epithelium of the horse and sheep had numerous ovoid granules (averaging above 15 per cell) and abundant AER. Granules were scarce (averaging less than 2 per cell) in steer and dog and absent in cat. AER was minimal in these species compared to horse and sheep. Glycogen was the dominant cytoplasmic feature in steer, dog, and cat, variable in sheep and rare in horse. Large mitochondria with few cristae and densely staining matrix were present only in cat. We concluded that nonciliated bronchiolar cells of horse and sheep were similar in essential features to this cell type in laboratory mammals, having granules and AER in abundance, while those of steer, dog, and cat were not.
AB - Two morphologic characteristics have been used to define the nonciliated bronchiolar epithelial cell: abundant agranular endoplasmic reticulum (AER) and membrane-bound ovoid granules. To assess the ultrastructural homogeneity of this cell type in the lungs of large domestic mammals used as experimental models in pulmonary research, we evaluated lungs of horse, steer, sheep, dog, and cat. Bronchioles of known anatomic location were examined by electron microscopy following fixation by airway infusion at standard pressure and processing by selective embedding techniques. Nonciliated bronchiolar epithelium of the horse and sheep had numerous ovoid granules (averaging above 15 per cell) and abundant AER. Granules were scarce (averaging less than 2 per cell) in steer and dog and absent in cat. AER was minimal in these species compared to horse and sheep. Glycogen was the dominant cytoplasmic feature in steer, dog, and cat, variable in sheep and rare in horse. Large mitochondria with few cristae and densely staining matrix were present only in cat. We concluded that nonciliated bronchiolar cells of horse and sheep were similar in essential features to this cell type in laboratory mammals, having granules and AER in abundance, while those of steer, dog, and cat were not.
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U2 - 10.3109/01902148009069645
DO - 10.3109/01902148009069645
M3 - Article
C2 - 7194780
AN - SCOPUS:0019292805
VL - 1
SP - 155
EP - 169
JO - Experimental Lung Research
JF - Experimental Lung Research
SN - 0190-2148
IS - 2
ER -