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X‐cells in the gills of an Antarctic teleost, Pagothenia borchgrevinki
Author(s) -
Franklin C. E.,
Davison W.
Publication year - 1988
Publication title -
journal of fish biology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.672
H-Index - 115
eISSN - 1095-8649
pISSN - 0022-1112
DOI - 10.1111/j.1095-8649.1988.tb05372.x
Subject(s) - gill , biology , fish <actinopterygii> , anatomy , southern hemisphere , zoology , fishery , ecology
X‐cell tumours have been described previously from teleost fish of the Northern Hemisphere, in which they occurred as lesions of the skin, pseudobranchs or gills. The present study describes X‐cell tumours from the gills of an Antarctic teleost, Pagothenia borchgrevinki , thus extending the range to the Antarctic and also the Southern Hemisphere. Gills of affected fish were distinctly swollen and white in appearance, indicating that the gills were not functional as gas exchange organs. The affected gill tissue contained large numbers of X‐cells, large spherical cells with a distinct extracellular coat and many densely staining membrane‐bound granules. The possible origin of the cells is discussed.