Morphological changes of telocytes in camel efferent ductules in response to seasonal variations during the reproductive cycle

Abstract

Telocytes (TCs) are a distinct stromal cell type described in many organs. The present study investigated the existence of TCs within the efferent ductules in camel and the changes that occur in their morphology and activity during active and inactive reproductive seasons. TCs in the camel had a cell body and multiple telopodes (TPs), and most TCs had indented nuclei that exhibited prominent intranucleolar chromatin. TCs exhibited seasonal differences which were evaluated by histochemistry, immunohistochemistry (IHC), Transimition electron microscopy (TEM) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The presence of TCs in camel efferent ductules has been confirmed by CD34 positive immunostaing. In addition to the expression of the vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) which was stronger in the summer season. TCs exhibited stronger immunoreactivity for progesterone and oestrogen alpha receptors (ESR1) in the spring than in the summer. In addition, TCs showed strong positive immunostaining for both vimentin and androgen receptor (AR). Several ultrastructural changes were observed in TCs during the two seasons. TPs in the summer season had delicate ramifications whereas, in the spring, TPs displayed fine arborization and became more corrugated. TCs acquired signs of exaggerated secretory activities in the spring; TPs became expanded and packed with secretory vesicles. Thus, we conclude that, hormonal alterations during the reproductive cycle impact the morphology and secretory behavior of TCs.

Morphological and immunohistochemical phenotype of TCs in the intestinal bulb of Grass carp and their potential role in intestinal immunity

“…ICC of the subserosa locates in the subserosa 76,77 . CD-34 is frequently used as a marker for TCs in mammalian and fish species 17,27 . CD34 is a transmembrane phosphoglycoprotein that commonly identified in hematopoietic stem cells and is detected in other progenitor www.nature.com/scientificreports/ cells such as interstitial cell progenitors, muscle satellite cells, epithelial progenitors, corneal keratocytes, and vascular endothelial progenitors 78 .…”

“…The procedure was performed according to that of Hoff et al modified by Refs. 27,[44][45][46][47][48] . Acridine Orange is a cationic dye and stains proteins-containing membranous vesicles including secretory vesicles, membrane bounded acidic compartments, and lysosomes that had an acidic nature.…”

Fish telocytes and their relation to rodlet cells in ruby-red-fin shark (rainbow shark) Epalzeorhynchos frenatum (Teleostei: Cyprinidae)

“…They formed a 3D network and established contact with rodlet cells. CD34 is a common marker for TCs in mammalian species 63 , 74 – 77 . Recently, CD34 positive TCs are identified in fish 78 .…”

“…Negative images performed by using CMEIAS Color Segmentation is a free, improved computing technology used to process color images by segmenting the foreground object of interest from the background 71 . This has been done by the following steps: open image with CMEIAS Color Segmentation, then select “Process” from the menu items and subsequently choose “Negative image” 63 , 65 , 72 .…”

Morphological and Histochemical Description of Quail Feather Development

“…Acridine orange (fluorescent stain) was applied to detect the formation of keratin in pennaceous and plumulaceous feathers. Acridine orange staining was performed according to Hoff et al () and Abdel‐Maksoud et al (), with modifications. The stained sections were examined using a Leitz DM 2500 microscope and an external Leica EL 6000 fluorescent unit.…”