Ultrastructural features of medullary chromaffin cell cultures

The ultrastructural organization on the fourth day of culture of chromaffin cells isolated from the bovine adrenal medulla was characterized based on electron microscopic and morphological analysis. We established that medullary chromaffin cells could be divided into four morphologically different subtypes. Most cells (49.1% of those examined) had a dense cytoplasm and fine dense granules. Cells with dense cytoplasm and large granules represented a second type of chromaffin cell (21.1%). Cells of the third type had a light cytoplasm, granules with a light halo and a well-developed Golgi apparatus (26.3%). The fourth type of chromaffin cell was characterized by moderately dense cytoplasm with well-expressed varicose rough endoplasmic reticulum (about 3.5%). Among concomitant cell types, cortical adrenal cells from the zona fasciculata and zona glomerulosa, epithelial cells, fibroblasts, lymphocytes, brown lipoblasts and glial Schwann cells were present. Morphological analysis implies that cells with dense cytoplasm and fine granules and those with light cytoplasm and haloed granules (75.4% in total) are adrenaline-containing cells, whereas the cells with dense cytoplasm and large granules (26.3%) contain noradrenaline. Cells with moderately dense cytoplasm and varicose reticulum share common morphological properties with classical glandular cells and, by their properties, were closer to noradrenaline-containing cells. It is concluded that chromaffin cells, which are the main cell type among cultured cells from adult bovine adrenal medulla, are morphologically quite heterogeneous. Other cell types of different nature may also be present in the culture and can locally influence the properties of the investigated medullary chromaffin cells used in electrophysiological experiments.