[Morphology and histogenesis of paraganglioma]

Histological and ultrastructural studies were performed to examine 6 paragangliomas of various sites: carotid glomus, aortic body, sympathetic chain, and stomach. Five of the tumors in question had a histological structure typical of a paraganglioma. The gastric tumor was distinguished by being similar to a pheochromocytoma. With regard to the degree of infiltrative growth, the paragangliomas of the sympathetic chain and stomach were regarded as malignant. The ultrastructures of the paragangliomas examined were found to be of the same type. In all the neoplasms, tumor cells had signs of neuroendocrine and neurogenous differentiations that were characteristic of the ultrastructural organization of postganglionic neurons in the autonomic nervous system. The neurogenous differentiation was evidenced by cytoplasmic portions that are structurally similar to rough-surface endoplasmic reticulum, which is pertaining to Nissl's bodies; neurofilaments that form concentric structures containing neuroendocrine granules such as fibrous or Pick's bodies; intracytoplasmic cilia; specialized cytoplasmic processes of two types: axons and dendrites; partially reduced intercellular contacts, such as axosomatic and axodendritic synapses; sustentacular cells (sustenocytes). In the neoplasms evaluated as malignant, the neurogenous differential signs were more pronounced by reducing the number of neurosecretory granules, which might, apparently, serve as an ultrastructural criterion for establishing the degree of paraganglioma malignancy.