Nexuses between the smooth muscle cells of the guinea-pig ileum.
The circular musculature of the guinea-pig ileum has been studied by freeze-fracture to analyze quantitatively the gap junctions (nexuses) between its smooth muscle cells. The average cell surface area and cell volume are 5,074 micron 2 and 3,260 micron 3. The packing density of nexuses is 48/1,000 micron 2 of cell surface or approximately 244/muscle cell. Nexuses range in area from less than 0.1 to approximately 1.5 micron 2 and they occupy 0.212% of the cell surface. The average packing density of intramembrane particles or pits in nexuses is approximately 7,200/micron 2 of nexal surface, indicating that there may be approximately 77,000 intercellular channels in the full complement of nexuses of one muscle cell.
D000818:Animals; D005614:Freeze Fracturing; D006168:Guinea Pigs; D007082:Ileum / Q000648:ultrastructure; D007365:Intercellular Junctions / Q000648:ultrastructure*; D008297:Male; D008961:Models, Structural; D009130:Muscle, Smooth / Q000648:ultrastructure*