Multiple Innervation der Chromatophorenmuskelzellen von Loligo vulgaris

Zusammenfassung Die Chromatophorenmuskelzellen von Loligo vulgaris bestehen aus einer äußeren, von Sarcoplasma umgebenen Schicht scheinbar spiralig gewundener Myofibrillen und einem zentralen, hyalin erscheinenden Innenraum. Jede Muskelzelle wird von Bindegewebe umhüllt. Im distalen Abschnitt der Muskelzelle ist die kontraktile Randzone mit flügelartigen Fortsätzen versehen. An der Zellbasis öffnet sie sich zu einem schmalen Spalt, dadurch wird eine direkte Verbindung zwischen dem Sarcoplasma und dem zentralen Strang des Muskels hergegestellt. — Mittels Silberimprägnation wird eine multiple Innervation von Chromatophoren nachgewiesen. Die Pasern treten in synaptischen Kontakt mit dem Sarcoplasma und folgen der Muskelzelle in zentripetaler, gelegentlich auch in zentrifugaler Richtung. An der Zellbasis dringen Nervenfasern durch den Spalt der Randzone in das Innere des Muskels und weiter bis in die Nähe der Pigmentzelle vor. Innerhalb des Zentralstranges läßt sich eine weitere Nervenfaser darstellen und bis zur Kernregion verfolgen. Fragen einer möglichen Variabilität des Innervationsmodus der verschiedenen Chromatophoren sowie funktioneile Gesichtspunkte werden kurz diskutiert.

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Multiple innervation of the chromatophore muscle cells of Loligo vulgaris

Summary The chromatophore muscle cells of Loligo vulgaris consist of a marginal zone of apparently helically arranged myofibrils, surrounded by sarcoplasm and a central hyalinous core. Each muscle element is covered by a connective tissue sheath. In the distal part of the muscle cell the marginal zone shows a wing-shaped protrusion; at the cell basis a narrow gap is visible, establishing a close connection between the sarcoplasm and the central core of the muscle, cell. — By means of silver impregnation a multiple innervation of the chromatophores has been shown. The fibers form a synaptic contact with the sarcoplasm and follow the muscle cell in a centripetal, occasionally even in a centrifugal direction. At the cell basis nervous structures penetrate through the gap of the marginal zone and may be followed to the vicinity of the pigment cell. Within the core of the muscle another nerve fiber can be distinguished and followed up to the region of the nucleus. Questions concerning a possible variability in the mode of innervation of different chromatophores and functional aspects are briefly discussed.

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Mit Unterstützung durch die Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft.

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Zur weiteren Aufklärung der hier angedeuteten morphologischen und physiologischen Probleme sind Untersuchungen im Gange.     

Cytocatalytic evolution in plants

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A method for estimating the number of invariant amino acid coding positions in a gene using cytochrome c as a model case

This paper shows, within the limitations of the assumption stated below, that approximately 27–29 of the unmutated codons which determine the amino acids of cytochrome c are invariant because of biological requirements. A mutation is defined here as the change of a single base in the sequence of a trinucleotide codon, which change alters the amino acid coded for. Codons, if any, in which mutations would be vigorously selected against are termed invariant codons. We assume that, subject to one adjustment, those mutations in the cytochrome c gene which survived in the descent of today's species are randomly distributed among the variable codons. The one adjustment arises from the possibility that a very few codon positions may exhibit frequencies of mutation sufficiently great to justify the exclusion of these codons from the overall distribution on the grounds that the frequency of mutation occurring in these few positions is clearly inconsistent with the assumption of randomness. There are 5 out of the total 110 codons in the cytochrome c structural gene which have clearly sustained an abnormally large number of mutations.This project received support from grants to W.M.F. from the National Institutes of Health (NB-04565) and the National Science Foundation (GB-4017).     

The flow of a viscous liquid in a converging tube

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