Ultrastructural and histochemical analysis of cytoplasmic laminar bodies in lateral geniculate neurons of adult cat

The structure of highly organized, cytoplasmic laminar bodies (CLB) of cat lateral geniculate body neurons is described. CLB are derived from endoplasmic reticulum (ER). The occurrence of other cytoplasmic bodies also derived from ER and mesh‐like in composition is noted. Stacks of dense membranous elements, restricted to one pole of each type of cytoplasmic body, were encountered. Mention is made of the relative persistence of CLB in atrophic neurons that show marked changes including loss of cytoplasmic granular ER. The tubules of CLB are normally coextensive with the granular ER. The topographic relationships of CLB with other cellular organelles such as mitochondria, Golgi complex and the nucleus are discussed. Routine staining techniques clearly demonstrate the CLB in 2 μ paraffin sections of tissue fixed by perfusion with buffered formalin. Histochemical tests show that CLB are chemically complex structures containing protein, lipid and polysaccharide components.