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The pineal gland of nocturnal mammals

II. The ultrastructure of the pineal gland in the pipistrelle bat (Pipistrellus pipistrellus L.): Presence of two populations of pinealocytes

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Summary

In the pineal gland of the pipistrelle bat two different populations of pinealocytes and glial cells were observed electron microscopically. The pinealocytes of populations I and II differ in their content of metabolically active cell organelles. In the pinealocytes of population I, granular vesicles originating from the Golgi apparatus were found in the perikaryon and especially in the endings of the pinealocyte processes. Granular vesicles appeared to be more numerous in hibernating nulliparous females. The pinealocytes of population II are characterized by the presence of small cytoplasmic vacuoles, probably originating from cisternae of the granular endoplasmic reticulum and containing flocculent material of moderate electron density. The classification of the pinealocytes belonging to population II is discussed.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. The Netherlands Institute for Brain Research, IJdijk 28, 1095 KJ, Amsterdam, The Netherlands

    P. Pévet

  2. Department of Anatomy and Embryology, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands

    P. Pévet

  3. Department of Zoology, University of Aberdeen, Aberdeen, Scotland

    P. A. Racey

Authors
  1. P. Pévet
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  2. P. A. Racey
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Additional information

This collaboration was initiated with the aid of an SRC European short visit grant to P.A.R.

The study was supported by the Foundation for Medical Research, the Netherlands (FUNGO, 13-35-33)

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Pévet, P., Racey, P.A. The pineal gland of nocturnal mammals. Cell Tissue Res. 216, 253–271 (1981). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00233619

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