The junctional connections between the cells of the urinary bladder in the rat.
The junctional connections between the cells of the urinary bladder epithelium in rat have been studied by freeze-fracturing. Tight junctions and desmosomes are known as structural features of the epithelium. In addition, gap junctions (nexus) have been found to connect the epithelial cells in an irregular distribution pattern. The junction size ranges from few assembled particles up to plaques with irregular forms. This may indicate that the gap junctions are mobile structures. The functional significance of the junctions in comparison with electrophysiological data is discussed.
D000818:Animals; D005614:Freeze Fracturing; D007365:Intercellular Junctions / Q000648:ultrastructure*; D008297:Male; D008855:Microscopy, Electron, Scanning; D051381:Rats / Q000033:anatomy & histology*; D001743:Urinary Bladder / Q000648:ultrastructure*