Cell surfaces and fibre relationships in sympathetic ganglion cultures: a scanning electron-microscopic study

Sympathetic ganglia from newborn rats and guinea-pigs were grown in modified Rose chambers and examined with scanning electron microscopy after 5-7 days. The cell types seen were macrophages, neurons, glial cells and connective tissue cells. They presented a wide range of surface morphologies and 3-dimensional configurations, from spheroid with an irregular surface to flattened with a smooth surface. The arrangement of the nerve fibres and cells in the outgrowth was essentially 2-layered with connective tissue cells nearest the substrate and nerve fibres, glial cells and macrophages lying over them. The relationships of sympathetic nerve fibres to the different cell types were also investigated. In all cases nerve fibres closely followed the cellular surface contours although the nature of the relationships varied. Fine finger-like cytoplasmic projections were sometimes seen from connective tissue cells and macrophages. The possible role of these structures in adhesion and motility is discussed.