[Ultrastructural changes in the mitochondria of Retzius' neuron exposed to hydrocortisone]

The ultrastructure of the Retzius cell (gigantic neurone) mitochondria of the medical leech was investigated. After seven repeated injections of hydrocortisone into the coelomic cavity, the transformation of laminar cristae of mitochondria into tubule-vesiculated structures was discovered. A question of correlation between the structure and function independently of the systematical position of the organism is discussed.