Scanning electron microscopy of transitory subependymal cysts in the developing midbrain of postnatal rats

Transitory cystic cavities, associated with the subependymal region of the aqueduct in the midbrain of postnatal rats aged 1-15 days, were studied by light and scanning electron microscopy. The walls of these cysts, as observed in scanning electron microscopy, were lined by a dense feltwork of nerve fibres. Two types of cells were identified in the cysts: smaller glioblasts and larger amoeboid microglial cells. The glioblasts were characterized by a smoother cell body with radiating long processes. The amoeboid microglial cells showed blebs and pseudopodia on their surface. They either adhered to the walls or floated freely in the lumen. It is postulated that the formation of the subependymal cysts in the developing brain resulted following the cleavage or breakdown of the nervous tissue due to the expansion of the aqueduct and the brain as a whole. The amoeboid microglial cells in the cysts were probably derived from the extravasated blood monocytes in response to the physical damage ensuing during the formation of the cysts.