1979 Volume 41 Issue 1 Pages 53-60
It has been reported by Hamazaki and Hamazaki et al. that brilliant cells derived from smooth muscle fibers are characterized by the presence of ketoenolic granules (KEG) which can be identified by the carbolfuchsin-iodine (CFI) method of Hamazaki. On the basis of the fixative used, ketoenolic granules are classified into the following kinds: Cr-, Fe-, Cu-, and Hg-KEGs. Brilliant cells have been demonstrated in lesions in human beings, monkeys, dogs, cats, rabbits and cattle. There have been no reports, however, on any porcine cases. This paper deals with the distribution and properties of brilliant cells found in the gastric tissue showing catarrh in 41 swine. The results obtained are summarized as follows. (1) Histopathological examination of the stomach revealed erosion, hyperemia, hemorrhage, edema, and infiltration of eosinophils, histocytes, lymphocytes and plasma cells. The changes were considered to indicate catarrhal gastritis. (2) Brilliant cells were observed mainly in the submucosa and the interstitial tissue of the tunica muscularis. They were found most frequently in the submucosa where the edematous dissociation of smooth muscle fibers was present. A few or no brilliant cells were seen in the lamina propria and the serous membrane of the stomach. (3) Of the four kinds of KEG in the brilliant cells, Cr- and Fe-KEGs were distinct, and Cu- and Hg-KEGs indistinct.
