Glycocalyx and ciliary interconnections of the vestibular sensory cells

抄録

The ultrastructure of glycocalyx and ciliary interconnections of the guinea pig vestibular sensory cells were investigated by the use of tannic acid and ruthenium red staining technique. Glycocalyx was found over the entire length of the cilia, in the form of a fuzzy filamentous layer emerged from the outer layer. Ciliary interconnections emerged from the plasma membrane and tightly connected neighbouring cilia. The tip links stretched from the tips of the sterecilia to their taller neighbours, which arranged in a same direction towards the kinocilium. These findings indicate that the ciliary interconnections may keep the cilia arranged in a bundle and the tip links may be involved in sensory cell mechanical transduction system.