Cell surface lipid in the amniotic fluid.
Limitations of cell staining and light microscopy have led to confusion as to the etiology and morphologic characteristics of nile-blue-sulfate-stained orange cells in amniotic fluid. Nomarski Differential Interference Contrast Microscopy (NDICM) was used to study these cells as they appear in their unstained state. The presence of lipid-bearing cells was correlated with gestational age and mode of delivery, and incubation studies were applied toward an evaluation of the mechanism of lipid formation. Lipid-bearing cells in the amniotic fluid appeared after 37 1/2 weeks' gestation in association with fetal lung maturity.
D000653:Amniotic Fluid / Q000166:cytology* / Q000378:metabolism; D036861:Delivery, Obstetric / Q000379:methods; D005260:Female; D005333:Fetus / Q000502:physiology; D005865:Gestational Age; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D050356:Lipid Metabolism; D008168:Lung / Q000196:embryology; D011247:Pregnancy