Abstract
The middle ear mucosa of guinea pigs was embedded in Lowicryl K4M. Thin sections of the mucosa were stained with a wheat germ agglutinin (WGA)-gold complex and examined by electron microscopy. Intense labeling was observed primarily over the microvillar membranes and the glycocalyx made of a fine filamentous network surrounding the microvilli. However, the labeling was dispersed over the membranes of the cilia and the apical plasma membrane of the epithelial cells. These results indicate that WGA-binding sites are closely associated with the outer structure of the microvilli and their glycocalyceal filaments on the cell surface in the middle ear epithelium.
