Ultrastructural differentiation and enzymatic localization of phosphatases in the developing duodenal epithelium of the mouse

Summary The localization of acid and alkaline phosphatase activities during the morphogenesis of the duodenum has been studied at the ultrastructural level in BALB/c mice. The present work deals with the foetal development from the 14th day till birth. It appears that acid phosphatase activity at the 14th day of foetal life, was situated in dense bodies at the base of the intestinal cells. At that moment, the flat apical membrane of the cells lining the intestinal lumen presented a faint alkaline phosphatase activity. With the maturation of the villus cells, the dense bodies migrated to a supra-nuclear zone, and on the 20th day, differentiated into a complex network of dense bodies and dense tubules showing the activity of the two phosphatases. On the other hand, the microvilli were developing from the 16th day, and active pinocytosis appeared on the 18th day. Alkaline phosphatase activity increased rapidly during this differentiation.This study was supported by a research grant no. N.D.G./27 from the Medical Research Council of Canada.The authors are indebted to Mr. Michel Couture for his assistance with the photographs.