Summary
Using techniques for enhanced microtubular preservation, including albumin pretreatment (Gray, 1975), occipital cortex of rats was studied electron microscopically at various ages of development. A close structural relationship was seen between microtubules, sacs of SER and the postsynaptic “thickening” in primordial spines and with the dense “plate” material of spine apparatuses. Stereoscopic preparations in addition show a more complicated substructure than previously described for the “plate”. Microtubules may contribute to the formation of the “plate” of the spine apparatus which in turn is associated with the postsynaptic “thickening” of the mature spine. Possible functional correlates are discussed.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Anderson CA, Westrum LE (1972) An electron microscopic study of the normal synaptic relationships and early degenerative changes in the rat olfactory tubercle. Z Zellforsch mikr Anat 127:462–482
Banker G, Churchill L, Cotman CW (1974) Proteins of the postsynaptic density. J Cell Biol 63:456–465
Bliss TVP, Gardner-Medwin AR (1973) Long-lasting potentiation of synaptic transmission in the dentate area of the anaesthetized rabbit following stimulation of the perforant path. J Physiol Lond 232:357–374
Bliss TVP, Lømo T (1973) Long-lasting potentiation of synaptic transmission in the dentate area of the anaesthetized rabbit following stimulation of the perforant path. J Physiol Lond 232:331–356
Dustin P (1978) Microtubule. Springer, Berlin
Fifkova E, Van Harreveld A (1977) Long-lasting morphological changes in dendritic spines of dentate granular cells following stimulation of the entorhinal area. J Neurocytol 6:211–230
Goldman R, Pollard T, Rosenbaum J (1976) Cell Motility. Book C: Microtubules and related proteins. Cold Spring Harbor Conferences on Cell Proliferation. Vol. 3
Gray EG (1959) Axo-somatic and axo-dendritic synapses of the cerebral cortex: an electron microscopic study. J Anat Lond 93:420–433
Gray EG (1971) The fine structural characterization of different types of synapse. Prog Brain Res 34:149–160
Gray EG (1975) Presynaptic microtubules and their association with synaptic vesicles. Proc Roy Soc B 190:369–372
Gray EG (1976) Problems of understanding the substructure of synapses. Prog Brain Res 45:207–234
Gray EG (1978) Synaptic vesicles and microtubules in frog motor end-plates. Proc Roy Soc B 203:219–227
Gray EG, Guillery RW (1963) A note on the dendritic spine apparatus. J Anat Lond 97:389–392
Gray EG, Westrum LE (1979) Marginal bundles of microtubules at nodes of Ranvier within muscle. Cell Tissue Res 199:281–288
Hamlyn LH (1962) The fine structure of the mossy fibre endings in the hippocampus of the rabbit. J Anat Lond 96:112–119
Jones DH, Matus AI (1974) Isolation of synaptic plasma membrane from brain by combined flotation-sedimentation density gradient centrifugation. Biochim Biophys Acta 356:276–287
Juraska JM, Fifkova E (1979) An electron microscope study of the early postnatal development of the visual cortex of the hooded rat. J Comp Neurol 183:257–268
Kanaseki K, Kadota K (1969) The vesicle in a basket. J Cell Biol 42:202–220
Kelly PT, Cotman CW (1977) Identification of glycoproteins and proteins at synapses in the central nervous system. J Biol Chem 252:786–793
Lund JS, Boothe RG, Lund RD (1977) Development of neurons in the visual cortex (area 17) of the monkey (Macaca nemestrina): a Golgi study from fetal day 127 to postnatal maturity. J Comp Neurol 176:149–177
Matus AI, Taff-Jones DH (1978) Morphology and molecular composition of isolated postjunctional structures. Proc Roy Soc B 203:135–151
Matus AI, Walters BB, Mughal S (1975) Immunohistochemical demonstration of tubulin associated with microtubules and synaptic junctions in mammalian brain. J Neurocytol 4:733–744
Peters A, Palay SL, Webster H deF (1976) The fine structure of the nervous system: The neurons and supporting cells. Saunders, Philadelphia
Suzaki T, Sakai H, Endo S, Kimura I, Shigenaka Y (1978) Effects of various anions, glutamate and GTP on microtubule assembly in vitro. J Biochem 84:75–81
Tarrant SB, Routtenberg A (1979) Postsynaptic membrane and spine apparatus: proximity in dendritic spines. Neurosci Lett 11:289–294
Westrum LE, Gray EG (1976) Microtubules and membrane specializations. Brain Res 105:547–550
Westrum LE, Gray EG (1977) Microtubules associated with postsynaptic thickenings. J Neurocytol 6:505–518
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Additional information
Dr. L.E. Westrum is an affiliate of the CDMRC at the University of Washington and a recipient of a Burroughs-Wellcome (USA) — Wellcome Trust (U.K.) Research Travel Grant. The research was also supported in part by NIH Grants NS 09678, NS 04053 (NINCDS) and DE 04942 (NIDR), DHHS
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Westrum, L.E., Jones, D.H., Gray, E.G. et al. Microtubules, dendritic spines and spine apparatuses. Cell Tissue Res. 208, 171–181 (1980). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00234868
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00234868