Abstract
Pineal explants from newborn rats were cultured with the roller-tube technique for 14 days. The microscopic morphology of the pineal glands was preserved after 14 days of culture. Electron microscopic analysis showed the explants to consist of classical pinealocytes, interstitial cells and blood-vessels. Junctional complexes could be observed between the pinealocytes. Nerve fibers were not present. Only a few of the pinealocytes exhibited S-antigen immunoreactivity. The explant cultures released melatonin continuously to the culture medium. Thus, cultured pineal explants serve as a model closer to the in vivo situation than single cell cultures of pinealocytes.
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© 1997 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg
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Møller, M., Micic, S., Reckling, J.C. (1997). Morphological Characterization of Rat Pineal Explant Cultures. In: Korf, HW., Usadel, KH. (eds) Neuroendocrinology. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-60915-2_27
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-60915-2_27
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