Ultrastructural study and cholinesterase activity of paired capillaries in the newt brain

We have investigated the ultrastructural and histochemical (AChE and BuChE) features of intracerebral vessels in newt. The blood vessels of the newt brain are paired and end in a closed loop. The two limbs, each of them has delineate the lumen by one endothelial cell, are enclosed within a single basement membrane and are separated from each other by a thin intercapillary wall. The brain capillaries are un-fenestrated and the overlapping endothelial cells were connected by clefts. Ependymal astrocytes extensively ensheath the surface of brain capillaries, but the sheats are incomplete. Pericytes and mast cells are frequently sandwiched in the endothelial basal lamina. Microglial cells are also present adjacent to cerebral vessels. The newt cerebral capillaries are characterized by high levels of AChE. This enzyme is localized in the basal membrane and in extracellular spaces between the overlapping endothelial cells. The vascular walls are instead deprived of BuChE activity. The non-nervous role of cholinesterases is discussed.