Morphological variability of smooth muscle cells in human nasal swell bodies

The complex functional behavior of nasal swell bodies is still not completely understood. In the present study the histology of the vessels involved in the swelling mechanism is examined and the ultrastructural appearances described of the different types of smooth muscle cells located in the vascular wall of swell bodies in the human inferior turbinate. Even though the majority of smooth muscle cells of the nasal swell bodies showed a normal, elongated appearance comparable to other smooth muscle cells elsewhere in the body, a variety of cells with atypical shapes could be detected that have not been described previously in vessels of the nasal mucosa. The diameters of the smooth muscle cells in general were strikingly variable. The individual smooth muscle cells were surrounded by a basal lamina that was occasionally disrupted or doubled. Myoblasts were separated by a connective tissue space containing collagen fibrils, mature elastin fibers and bundles of microfibrils. The latter two types of fibers and fibrils occurred mainly in the outer parts of the muscular coat. The endowment of cytoplasmic components was similar in all smooth muscle cells of the vascular wall in the swell bodies. These findings indicate that the specific feature of smooth musculature presumably resides in the unusual morphological variability of the single cells present, as well as in the striking heterogeneity of the arrangement of bundles of these cells in the vascular wall.