Microvascular architecture of mouse urinary bladder described with vascular corrosion casting, light microscopy, SEM, and TEM.

The urinary bladder is a unique organ in that its normal function is storage and release of urine, and vasculature in its wall exhibits specialized features designed to accommodate changes in pressure with emptying and filling. Although we have previously described the fine details of the microvasculature of the urinary bladder of the rabbit and dog, information on the fine details of the microvasculature of the mouse bladder were deemed to be of value because of the increasing use of this species in developing genetic models for studying human disorders. The present study shows that many of the special features of the microvasculature of the mouse urinary bladder are similar to those described in the rabbit and dog, including vessel coiling, abundant collateral circulation, arterial sphincters, and a dense mucosal capillary plexus.

Microvasculature of the urinary bladder of the dog: a study using vascular corrosion casting.

The urinary bladder is an unusual organ in that its normal function includes filling and emptying with alternating changes in internal pressure. Although fluctuations in blood flow to the bladder wall are known to accompany these changes, detailed descriptions of the bladder microvasculature are sparse. The present study uses vascular corrosion casting and scanning electron microscopy to describe the three-dimensional anatomy of the microvasculature of the urinary bladder of the dog.

Confocal microscopy, computer modeling, and quantification of glomerular vascular corrosion casts.

Corrosion-casted capillary systems of the kidney glomerulus were imaged with confocal microscopy because of the fluorescence properties of the casting plastic. Acquisition of a z-series through the glomerular capillaries provided three-dimensional data sets from which surface-rendered models were generated. These models could be rotated and viewed from any angle and also contained quantitative information allowing cast surface area and volume measurements to be calculated.

Bacterial activation of mast cells.

Mast cells often are found in a perivascular location but especially in mucosae, where they may response to various stimuli. They typically associate with immediate hypersensitive responses and are likely to play a critical role in host defense. In this chapter, a common airway pathogen, Moraxella catarrhalis, and a commensal bacterium, Neiserria cinerea, are used to illustrate activation of human mast cells.

Vascular Corrosion Casting: Review of Advantages and Limitations in the Application of Some Simple Quantitative Methods.

Vascular corrosion casting has been used for about 40 years to produce replicas of normal and abnormal vasculature and microvasculature of various tissues and organs that could be viewed at the ultrastructural level. In combination with scanning electron microscopy (SEM), the primary application of corrosion casting has been to describe the morphology and anatomical distribution of blood vessels in these tissues. However, such replicas should also contain quantitative information about that vasculature.

Ultrastructure and blood supply of the tegmentum vasculosum in the cochlea of the duckling.

The tegmentum vasculosum of the duckling consists of a highly folded epithelium which extends over the dorsal and lateral walls of the cochlear duct, separating the scala media from the scala vestibuli. This epithelium consists of two distinct cell types, dark cells and light cells, and is well vascularized. The surface of the epithelium is formed by a mosaic of alternating dark and light cells.

Na+,K+-ATPase activity and ultrastructural localization in the tegmentum vasculosum in the cochlea of the duckling.

The tegmentum vasculosum of the avian cochlear duct mimics the stria vascularis of the mammalian cochlear duct in both location and structure, and previous studies indicate that it may be its functional counterpart with regard to endolymph synthesis. In the present study, we report on the enzymatic activity and ultrastructural localization of the Na+,K+-ATPase in the tegmentum vasculosum of the duckling. Na+,K+-ATPase activity was determined by measuring K+-dependent, ouabain-sensitive p-nitrophenyl phosphatase (p-NPPase) activity in homogenates of dissected regions of the cochlear duct.

Comparative study of dentition among species of Poecilia (Pisces).

Many studies in the genus Poecilia have focused on reproductive and genetic characteristics of Poecilia formosa, the Amazon molly, and its sympatric species P. latipinna and P. mexicana.

The gill arch of the striped bass (Morone saxatilis). IV. Alterations in the ultrastructure of chloride cell apical crypts and chloride efflux following exposure to seawater.

Osmotically induced alterations in the ultrastructure of the apical crypts of chloride cells and changes in chloride efflux were studied in striped bass (Morone saxatilis). Striped bass were divided into three groups: fish adapted to freshwater, fish transferred directly from freshwater to 100% seawater (3% salt, w/v) for 24 hr or less, and fish adapted to 100% seawater for 7 days or more. Transmission electron microscopy studies revealed multicellular complexes of cells in both freshwater- and seawater-adapted fish.