Ross M D, Rogers C M, Donovan K M
Acta Otolaryngol. 1986 Jul-Aug;102(1-2):75-86. doi: 10.3109/00016488609108649.
Serial sections through the anterior part of rat saccular macula were reconstructed as montages. Findings are that type II hair cells are integrated into the neural circuitry of type I cells, chiefly by synapses with neighboring calyces and their collaterals; and that complex interactions between afferent- and efferent-type nerve elements take place. Three basic types of nerve/calyx pattern are present: U-type nerves lose their myelin before they enter the macula and have complex calyces with several collaterals; M-type nerves are myelinated up to the calyx, which lacks collaterals; and M/U-type nerves have short, unmyelinated segments proximal to their calyces, which have few collaterals. Both afferent- and efferent-type collaterals spring from calyces, chiefly from those of U-type nerves. Type II cells are presynaptic both to electron-lucent and to vesiculated terminals; some synapses are reciprocal. Electron-lucent boutons sometimes are presynaptic to calyces and to type II hair cells; and morphologically afferent-to-afferent kinds of synapses occur in the neuroepithelium. The anatomical findings indicate that complex information processing must occur in mammalian gravity receptors.
通过对大鼠球囊斑前部的连续切片进行拼接重建。研究结果表明，II型毛细胞主要通过与相邻杯状细胞及其分支形成突触，融入I型细胞的神经回路；并且传入型和传出型神经元件之间发生复杂的相互作用。存在三种基本类型的神经/杯状细胞模式：U型神经在进入黄斑之前失去髓鞘，具有带有多个分支的复杂杯状细胞；M型神经在到达杯状细胞之前一直有髓鞘，杯状细胞没有分支；M/U型神经在其杯状细胞近端有短的无髓鞘段，杯状细胞分支很少。传入型和传出型分支均起源于杯状细胞，主要来自U型神经的杯状细胞。II型细胞对电子透明和含囊泡的终末均为突触前；一些突触是相互的。电子透明的终扣有时对杯状细胞和II型毛细胞为突触前；并且在神经上皮中出现形态学上传入-传入类型的突触。解剖学研究结果表明，在哺乳动物重力感受器中必然发生复杂的信息处理。
