L'Organizzazione strutturale delle lamine gliali periventeicolari dell'uomo in condizioni normali e patologiche

Summary The Autor has studied in man the structure of the periventricular glial membranes (corneal laminae) of lateral ventricles of normal and hydrocephalic brains. In normal, these membranes are constituted of three layers: ependyma, sub-ependymal fibrillar layer and vascular layer, whose thickness varies according to the region.In advanced hydrocephalus, the corneal laminae become notably thicker building up a plurilaminar structure, while many gliocytes undergo a clear hypertrophy accompanied with an increase of the intracellular proteic substance. These findings confirm the mechanic significance of the glial structures and the possibilities of structural adaptation of fibrous gliocytes to modified mechanical conditions.The structural peculiarities of corneal cytomorphosis of fibrous gliocytes allow to establish an interesting comparison with the behavior of the epidermal cells.