Carbohydrates of the vestibular end organs. An ultrastructural study using gold-labeled lectins

The presence of carbohydrates in the glycocalyx of the vestibular end organs of the guinea pig was investigated at the ultrastructural level using lectin-gold solutions. The glycocalyx of both the sensory and the supporting cells has variable sugar components. The glycocalyx of the sensory cells including the ciliary interconnections contains N-acetyl-glucosamine, galactose and mannose. In contrast, the glycocalyx of the supporting cells had a lower amount of N-acetylglucosamine. The ciliary interconnections, which have been considered to be a part of the glycocalyx, have larger amounts of galactose and mannose than the surface glycocalyx. These findings indicate that the sugar components may be closely related to the functional significance of the inner-ear glycocalyx and that the functional properties of the glycocalyx may differ between the sensory and the supporting cells of the vestibular end organs.