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Ultrastructural observation on ‘transitional tubules’ in human oviductal ciliogenic cells

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 August 1997

HARUO HAGIWARA
Affiliation:
Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology, Gunma University School of Medicine, Maebashi, Japan
TAKEO AOKI
Affiliation:
Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology, Gunma University School of Medicine, Maebashi, Japan
TOYOSHI FUJIMOTO
Affiliation:
Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology, Gunma University School of Medicine, Maebashi, Japan
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Abstract

In the human oviduct epithelium during ciliogenesis, short tubular structures were found in the transitional zone between the basal body and cilium. The tubules, termed transitional tubules from their location, were 34–36 nm in diameter and 0.13±0.06 μm in length; the number around a basal body was variable, but usually 4–6. The cytoplasmic leaflets of the tubule membranes were coated by electron-dense material and appeared to be connected to alar sheets. The transitional tubules existed transiently during ciliogenesis. The exact role of transitional tubules is unknown, but considering their location, they may fix the basal body in the apical cytoplasm during ciliary elongation and/or may be related to formation of alar sheets.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
© Anatomical Society of Great Britain and Ireland 1997

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