Statements in which the resource exists as a subject.
PredicateObject
rdf:type
lifeskim:mentions
pubmed:issue
10
pubmed:dateCreated
1988-10-7
pubmed:abstractText
The teleost pineal organ contains functional photoreceptors that synapse with pinealofugal neurons. This study examined the effects of environmental lighting on protein content and levels of putative amino acid transmitters, as well as structural components associated with protein synthesis and neurotransmission. Goldfish subjected to continual illumination for 3 days tended to have increased pineal levels of free amino acids and protein compared to dark adapted glands. Similar responses to environmental lighting occurred in cultured glands suggesting a functional relationship to photosensory mechanisms. Morphometric ultrastructural analyses of pineal photoreceptors showed an increased size of nucleoli (especially the fibrillar component), Golgi bodies, and synaptic ribbons when glands were subjected to continuous light both in vivo and in vitro. The good agreement between protein levels and nucleolar morphology indicates a general effect of environmental lighting on photoreceptor protein metabolism, which may be related to photoreceptor outer segment renewal. Parallel changes in levels of certain amino acids (e.g., glutamate) and size of synaptic ribbons is consistent with an hypothesized role of amino acids in photoreceptor neurotransmission.
pubmed:language
eng
pubmed:journal
pubmed:citationSubset
IM
pubmed:chemical
pubmed:status
MEDLINE
pubmed:issn
0024-3205
pubmed:author
pubmed:issnType
Print
pubmed:volume
43
pubmed:owner
NLM
pubmed:authorsComplete
Y
pubmed:pagination
845-50
pubmed:dateRevised
2008-11-21
pubmed:meshHeading
pubmed:year
1988
pubmed:articleTitle
Ultrastructural and biochemical responses of photoreceptor pinealocytes to light and dark in vivo and in vitro.
pubmed:affiliation
Department of Anatomy, Loyola University Stritch School of Medicine, Maywood, Illinois 60153.
pubmed:publicationType
Journal Article