Intimal cells and atherosclerosis. Relationship between the number of intimal cells and major manifestations of atherosclerosis in the human aorta.

The subendothelial intima of human aorta is populated by cells of various shapes. Round and ovoid cells which are lymphocyte- and monocyte-like hematogenous cells account for less than 5% of the cell population. The bulk of the intimal population (over 95%) is made up of cells that can be described as elongated, stellate, elongated with side processes, and irregularly shaped.

[Morphogenesis of mitral valve calcification in rheumatism and the significance of the petrifications in surgical practice].

Eighty-five calcified mitral valves were examined histologically and histochemically and 28 valves were examined in the scanning electron microscope. Different forms of calcification were discovered in rheumatic sclerosis of the mitral valve: dust-like, laminar petrifact, large-tuberous petrifact with protein apoplexy. The cardiac valve calcification in rheumatic fever is preceeded by local dystrophic changes of collagen fibers which undergo swelling, homogenization, and become picrinophilic.

[Ultrastructural and histochemical criteria of myocardial hypoxia and a morphological assessment of the various methods for its protection (based on biopsy data of the human heart)].

Short-term ischemia (up to 10 minutes) induced by clamping of the aorta in correction of a ventricular septal defect causes no essential ultrastructural, metabolic or functional changes in the myocardium. In much longer period of ischemia (of up to 40 minutes) during operation for congenital heart diseases, the use of deep hypothermia is effective. Cold cardioplegia is a sufficiently reliable method for myocardial protection when the aorta is clamped for up to 60 minutes in operations for acquired heart diseases.

[Destruction of the aortic allo- and xenovalves of the heart depending on their position and time of transplantation].

The aortic valve, as well as the other valves of the heart, has a cellular structure. Collagenous fibres form the skeleton of the cellular structures, and the plexus of thinner fibres--the "walls". At early periods following the implantation destruction of thin fibres distributed along the periphery of the alveolus takes place.

[Possibilities of studying 3-dimensional structure of the arterial wall with help of scanning electron microscope].

A complex of methods for investigation of the architectonics of the vascular wall is suggested. It was established that an elastin carcass of all the layers of the arterial wall was formed of laminar membranes consisting of cylindrical elastic fibers with a diameter 1.5--3 mcm having a fibrillar structure.

[Role of the inner elastic membrane in forming the surface microrelief of blood vessels].

A study of the aortic walls with and without the endothelial cells by means of the raster electron microscope showed the great folds of the blood vascular microrelief to be formed by the inner elastic membrane.

[Heart valves in rheumatic heart disease in the light of scanning electron microscopy].

In case of rheumatic sclerosis the micro-relief of the surface of the mitral and aortic valves changes considerably: the first order plicas disappear, a new chaotic micro-relief is formed that depends on the deep specific changes in the collagen-elastic structures of the valves. In rheumatic heart diseases the valves are characterized by focal disendothelization of the surface, which permits to examine the valve in layers, and to study not only its surface, but also its internal subendothelial structures. Scanning electron microscopy permitted to visualize for the first time in a full three-dimentional image the severely altered collagen structures of the disendothelialized portions of rhumatic valves.

[New findings on the structure of normal blood vessels according to rastral electron microscopy data].

Under rastral electron microscopic study were the internal surface of the aorta of 48 humans from 2 weeks to 75 years of age, the large cutaneous vein of the shank in 14 humans from 12 to 58 years of age, the femoral artery and vein in 8 mongrel dogs. It was established that the internal surface of blood vessels was not a smooth-walled cylinder but a structure with a complicated relief. The microrelief of the internal surface is formed of subendothelially disposed collagenous-elastic formations and configuration of the endothelial cells cytoplasm.

[Atherosclerotic aortic aneurysm (based on observations with the scanning electron microscope)].

The inner surface of the wall of atherosclerotic aneurism represented a sort of large ulcerative atherosclerotic plaque. Its individual areas were characterised by the presence of pseudo-hypertrophy of the endothelium cell nuclei, microplaques, and desorganization of the microrelief. The inner surface of the aneurism was de-endotheliolized on a considerable area, and here there were revealed deposits of lipids in the form of millet-like formations and smooth bodies.

[Surface structure of the macrophages and lymphocytes in their interaction under conditions of antigenic stimulation observed with the scanning electron microscope].

The surface structure of macrophages, lymphocytes of peritoneal exudate and lymphocytes from the lymphatic node of intact, stimulated with meat-pentone broth and induced with antigen mice was studied using raster electron microscopy. Lymphocytes outwardly did not differ from each other irrespective the source of their origin. Macrophages obtained from the peritoneal cavity of the stimulated mice morphologically differed from those isolated from intact mice.

[Cytoplasmic cross links of erythrocytes (observations in scanning electron microscopy)].

Erthyrocytes can form cytoplasmatic bridged connecting with each other individual cells or a great number of cells into a conglomerate. The cytoplasmatic bridges--is a peculiar form of existance of erythrocytes which differ from the forms described earlier: thorm-like (spheroechinocytes) and myelino-like forms having nothing in common with the mechanism of agglutination. The cytoplasmatic bridges of erythrocytes were found in man, dogs and guinea-pigs irrespective of a disease or conditions of an experiment, i.