title: Comparative study of the olfactory epithelium of the three-spined stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus) and the nine-spined stickleback (Pungitius pungitius).
abstract: The olfactory epithelium of the three-spined stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus) and the nine-spined stickleback (Pungitius pungitius) has been studied with a conventional histochemical and a novel immunological staining technique. In both species, the sensory epithelium is arranged in folds separated by non-sensory epithelial tissue. In the nine-spined stickleback, intrinsic folds consisting of non-sensory cells are found in the apical part of the sensory epithelium where they divide the surface of the sensory epithelium into small islets. These non-sensory cells are non-ciliated, flattened and piled on top of each other; they contain numerous electron-translucent vesicles. The intrinsic folds are absent from the sensory epithelium of the three-spined stickleback. In both species, axons of receptor cells form a layer of fibers in the sensory epithelium immediately above the basal cells. In the three-spined stickleback, thick branches of the olfactory nerve are frequently found in this layer. These branches are only occasionally observed in the sensory epithelium of the nine-spined stickleback. Thus, the three-spined stickleback and the nine-spined stickleback show considerable differences in the organization of the sensory regions of the olfactory epithelium.
authors.affiliation: Department of Zoology, University of Lund, Sweden.
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Honkanen
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Ekström
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001369:Axons / Q000648:ultrastructure; D005075:Biological Evolution; D004848:Epithelium / Q000033:anatomy & histology / Q000294:innervation / Q000378:metabolism; D005399:Fishes / Q000033:anatomy & histology* / Q000378:metabolism; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D008854:Microscopy, Electron; D009831:Olfactory Mucosa / Q000033:anatomy & histology* / Q000294:innervation / Q000378:metabolism; D009832:Olfactory Nerve / Q000378:metabolism / Q000648:ultrastructure; D013045:Species Specificity; D013373:Substance P / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D013373:Substance P