"Dark cells" in normal, hyperplastic, and promoter-treated mouse epidermis studied by conventional and high-voltage electron microscopy.

Dark cells (DC) could be reproducibly demonstrated by differential toluidine-blue staining and electron microscopy (EM) of NYLR/Nya 16- to 19-day embryo and new born skin and phorbol ester-treated or untreated young adult skin. High-voltage electron microscopy on the same or adjacent sections showed that toluidine-blue staining picks out some but not all the DC seen by EM. The ultrastructure of DC was similar in all the above situations, except that phorbol ester-induced DC showed a less contracted nucleus. No support was obtained for DC as stem cells either for basal-cell hyperplasia or for development of hair follicle or gland outgrowths. Most of the severely contracted DC (Types 3 and 4) were assumed to have undergone an apoptotic type of cell death. Two phenomena that may have caused the contraction and apoptosis were observed. Formation of a "contraction vacuole" adjacent to the DC probably led to a loss of intercellular communication. An apparent necrosis of dermal capillaries in areas of abundant follicle downgrowth probably produced local anoxia. Further characterization of DC requires a search for cytochemical or immunologic markers, analysis of intracellular calcium and other elements, and the cloning of subpopulations of basal cells that can be selectively induced to form DC.

Ascites tumor invasion of mouse peritoneum studied by high-voltage electron microscope stereoscopy.

Interaction of Krebs-2 and Ehrlich tetraploid cells with NYLR/Nya mouse peritoneum mesothelium and penetration of basal lamina and elastic reticulum were studied. Invasion of abdominal viscera was rare. Invading cells had a shrunken nucleus and cytoplasm like the "dark cells" of hyperplastic epithelia. High-voltage electron microscope stereoscopy showed that invasive cells pass through small holes in the elastic reticulum by adherence to the reticulum and by constriction of the cells. High voltage electron microscopy stereoscopy of collagen fibers near tumor cells indicated that fragmentation and loss of collagen is minimal. Rapid progression by ascites transfer appears to produce anchorage-independent cells adapted to ascites fluid growth, but new selection steps must be adopted to concentrate strongly invasive subpopulations.

Neuronal cell surfaces: distinctive glycoproteins of cultured adrenergic and cholinergic sympathetic neurons.

Cell surface components which are candidates for a role in nerve-target interactions specific for neurons of particular transmitter types in the sympathetic nervous system have been identified. Neurons of superior cervical ganglia of neonatal rats were dissociated and cultured in the virtual absence of non-neuronal cells under conditions previously found to control their choice of neurotransmitter. When raised in medium conditioned by heart cells, the neurons become cholinergic; when raised in medium which depolarizes them, the neurons remain in their original adrenergic state. The cell surface proteins of the neurons were labeled by either metabolic or surface-specific methods, separated by two-dimensional polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, and visualized by autoradiography. A total of approximately 35 glycoproteins can be resolved, of which at least 14 are exposed on the cell surface. We evaluated glycoproteins of neurons raised under conditions which differ in their potency for inducing cholinergic properties: medium conditioned by skeletal muscle, liver, or heart cells or medium containing 1 mM butyric acid. The expression of three neuronal glycoproteins was correlated with the ability of a given culture condition to induce the synthesis and accumulation of acetylcholine or catecholamines. Two of these proteins are exposed on the cell surface, and the third appears to be identical with a protein previously shown to be secreted into the culture medium.