The ultrastructure of the innervation of the intestinal wall in the teleosts Myoxocephalus scorpius and Pleuronectes platessa

Summary The innervation of the intestinal wall in the teleosts Myoxocephalus and Pleuronectes was examined electron microscopically. Two classes of axons can be identified. The first, which is in the majority, contains numerous 50–150 nm granular vesicles as well as some 40–50 nm agranular vesicles while the second contains predominantly the 40–50 nm agranular vesicles. Chromate/dichromate staining methods suggest that the first type is aminergic. Both types lie in close association with the perikarya of intrinsic myenteric neurons but only axons containing predominantly agranular vesicles have synaptic membrane specialisations. No axon bundles pass into the longitudinal muscle layer in Myoxocephalus gut and though some do in Pleuronectes, they do not closely approach the smooth muscle cells. Axons containing large granular vesicles lie in intimate contact with the myocytes of the circular muscle layer. Both axon types pass through the submucosa to form a plexus underneath the mucosal epithelium. Varicosities containing agranular or granular vesicles are separated from the epithelial cells by a gap of about 200 nm in which lies a basal lamina.