[Tubular bodies (Weibel-Palade) in the endothelial cell of glioblastoma].

Authors have studied the ultrastructure of endothelial cells in the microvessels of malignant and benign gliomas and in particular, the numbers of tubular bodies (Weibel-Palade) in endothelial cells of glioma microvessels in related with blood vessel proliferation. Glioblastoma 6, astrocytoma grade II 1, oligodendroglioma 1 and 2 samples of non-tumor brain tissue were analyzed quantitatively using light and electron microscope with Karnovski fixative. All tissues were obtained from the center, the intermediate and the margin in each tumor tissue and just outside of the tumor at operation. 389 microvessels were examined in the total gliomas electronmicroscopically. Tubular body was first described by Weibel and Palade in the vascular endothelial cells of various organs in both man and animals. This is now considered to be an organelle specific to the endothelial cell, but its function is still unknown. Tubular body observed in the endothelial cells of the gliomas vessels consisted of a membrane-limited round, oval or elongated shaped intra cytoplasmic body (about 0.1-0.2 micron) which contained tubules of 150-200 A outer diameter. Tubular bodies were classified in the two types. One of them (mature type) was relatively electron dense to be more compact, the other (immature type) had relatively pale matrix. In the immature type they are located in close proximity to the Golgi complex or endoplasmic reticulum.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)