Summary
-
1.
Extra-adrenal chromaffin cells from adult frogs were grown in tissue culture and their morphology and behaviour observed with both light and electron microscopy.
-
2.
Two types of chromaffin cells were distinguished: Type A cells contain large, electron dense vesicles (2000–6000 Å) and are equated to Type I chromaffin cells seen in vivo, i.e. they contain noradrenaline; Type B cells contain smaller vesicles (700–2000 Å) which are incompletely filled with an electron dense material and are equated to Type III chromaffin cells seen in vivo, i.e. cells depleted of their catecholamines by stimulation. No cells comparable to Types II and IV cells in vivo were seen.
-
3.
Close associations between the cultured chromaffin cells and sympathetic neurons were observed with the light microscope, but no examples of synaptic structures were seen in the material examined with electron microscopy in this study.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Blood, L. A.: Some quantitative effects of nerve growth factor on dorsal root ganglia of chick embryos in culture. J. Anat. (Lond.) 112, 315–328 (1972)
Brundin, T.: Studies on the preaortal paraganglia of newborn rabbits. Acta physiol. scand., Suppl. 290, 1–54 (1966)
Chamley, J. H., Mark, G. E., Burnstook, G.: Sympathetic ganglia in culture. II. Accessory cells. Z. Zellforsch. 135, 315–327 (1972)
Corrodi, H., Jonsson, G.: The formaldehyde fluorescence method for the histochemical demonstration of biogenic monoamines. A review on the methodology. J. Histochem. Cytochem. 15, 65–78 (1967)
Coupland, R. E.: The natural history of the chromaffin cell. London: Longmans, Green & Co. Ltd. 1965
Eränkö, O., Eränkö, L., Hill, C. E., Burnstock, G.: Hydrocortisone-induced increase in the number of small intensely fluorescent cells and their histochemically demonstrable catecholamine content in cultures of sympathetic ganglia of the newborn rat. Histochem. J. 4, 49–58 (1972)
Eränkö, O., Härkönen, M.: Effect of axon division on the distribution of noradrenaline and acetylcholinesterase in sympathetic neurons of the rat. Acta physiol. scand. 63, 411–412 (1965)
Falck, B.: Observations on the possibilities of the cellular localization of monoamines by a fluorescence method. Acta physiol. scand., Suppl. 197, 1–25 (1962)
Hanks, J. H., Wallace, R. E.: Relation of oxygen and temperature in the preservation of tissues by refrigeration. Proc. Soc. exp. Biol. (N.Y.) 71, 196–200 (1949)
Hervonen, A., Hervonen, H., Rechardt, L.: Axonal growth from the primitive sympathetic elements of human fetal adrenal medulla. Experientia (Basel) 28, 178–179 (1972)
Hill,C.E., Burnstock, G.: Amphibian sympathetic ganglia in tissue culture. Cell Tiss. Res. (in press) (1975a)
Hill, C. E., Watanabe, H., Burnstock, G.: Distribution and morphology of amphibian extraadrenal chromaffin tissue. Cell Tiss. Res. 160, 371–387 (1975b)
Manuelidis, L.: Adrenal gland in tissue culture. Nature (Lond.) 227, 619–621 (1970)
Manuelidis, L.: Selective uptake of 3H tyramine by chromaffin cells in vitro and simultaneous release of noradrenaline. J. Neurocytol. 2, 117–131 (1973)
Orden, L. S. Van, Burke, J. P., Geyer, M., Lodoen, F. V.: Localization of depletion-sensitive and depletion-resistant norepinephrine storage sites in autonomic ganglia. J. Pharmacol. exp. Ther. 174, 56–71 (1970)
Piezzi, R. S.: Chromaffin tissue in the adrenal gland of the toad, Bufo arenarum Hensel. Gen. comp. Endocr. 9, 143–153 (1967)
Piezzi, R. S., Cavicchia, J. C.: Explants of rat adrenal medulla. A light and electron microscopic study. Anat. Rec. 175, 77–85 (1973)
Shimada, Y., Fischman, D. A., Moscona, A. A.: The fine structure of embryonic chick skeletal muscle cells differentiated in vitro. J. Cell Biol. 35, 445–453 (1967)
Silberstein, S. D., Lemberger, L., Klein, D. C., Axelrod, J., Kopin, I. J.: Induction of adrenal tyrosine hydroxylase in organ culture. Neuropharmacol. 11, 721–726 (1972)
Venable, J. M., Coggeshall, R.: A simplified lead citrate stain for use in electron microscopy. J. Cell Biol. 25, 407–408 (1965)
Wolf, M. K.: Differentiation of neuronal types and synapses in myelinating cultures of mouse cerebellum. J. Cell Biol. 22, 259–279 (1964)
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Hill, C.E., Hoult, M. & Burnstock, G. Extra-adrenal chromaffin cells grown in tissue culture. Cell Tissue Res. 161, 103–117 (1975). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00222117
Received:
Revised:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00222117