The structural organization and the steroidogenic responsiveness in vitro of adrenal gland tissue from the neonatal mallard duck (Anas platyrhynchos)

Summary The adrenal steroidogenic tissue of the neonatal mallard duckling is differentiated into an outer subcapsular zone where the cells contain many large lipid droplets, and an inner zone in which the cells appear to contain less lipid. The cells in both zones contain numerous mitochondria and an abundance of smooth endoplasmic reticulum, and their interdigitating plasma membranes possess many filipodia, coated pits and desmosome-like junctions. Islands of chromaffin cells are distributed throughout the steroidogenic tissue. Two types of chromaffin cell are present, one with vesicles containing densely staining material and the other more lightly staining material. Non-myelinated preganglionic fibers synapse with the chromaffin cells and the axonal terminals contain two types of dense-cored vesicles as well as acetylcholine-containing vesicles. The basal rates of corticosterone (B) and aldosterone (Aldo) release from tissue superfused with buffer containing no secretogogue were low and almost equal (B: Aldo=1.25); the corresponding rate of deoxycorticosterone (DOC) release was less than one-fortieth of the rates of B and Aldo release. The addition of 1–24 ACTH to the medium caused the rate of release of each hormone to increase as a semi-logarithmic function of the concentration and the induced increase in B release was always significantly higher than that of Aldo (B: Aldo=4.8). The corticotropin-induced rates of B and Aldo, but not DOC, release reflected do novo hormone synthesis. Norepinephrine, epinephrine and dopamine each suppressed the basal rates of B and Aldo release, but had no effect when the medium contained 1–24 ACTH. Acetylcholine (ACh) similarly suppressed the basal rates of hormone release, and neither suppressed nor enhanced the responses to medium containing 1–24 ACTH. The suppressive effects of the catecholamines and ACh were not dose-related. Asp¹, Val⁵] angiotensin II induced significant semi-logarithmic dose-dependent increases in Aldo synthesis but had no effect on the release of either B or DOC.This work was supported by grants to J. Cronshaw and W.N. Holmes from the University of California Committee on Research and the National Science Foundation (DIR-8820923), Washington, D.C., USA