TY - JOUR
T1 - Microscopic nodes and ducts inside lymphatics and on the surface of internal organs are rich in granulocytes and secretory granules
AU - Kwon, Byoung S.
AU - Ha, Chang M.
AU - Yu, Sungsook
AU - Lee, Byung Cheon
AU - Ro, Jae Y.
AU - Hwang, Sunhee
N1 - Funding Information:
We thank Drs. Kwang S. Soh and Jea S. Ko for numerous discussions about the BHV and concerning histological interpretations. This research was supported by grants from National Research Foundation of Korea ( 0031427 and 0027802 ) and National Cancer Center, Korea ( NCC1210370-1 and NCC1130720-1 ).
PY - 2012/11
Y1 - 2012/11
N2 - The blood and lymphatic systems are the two well-established circulatory systems. The existence of a third circulatory system representing acupuncture meridians was claimed in the 1960s. The very existence and function of the system, however, remained uncertain. We have found that microscopic nodes and ducts inside lymphatics, as well as on the surface of internal organs of the rat. The nodes and ducts are covered by a layer of EMP-3-positive spindle-shaped epithelium with, below, a layer of vWF-positive but CD31-negative endothelium. The nodes contain a variety of immune cells, usually enriched with mast cells, eosinophils, neutrophils and histiocytes, as well as chromaffin cells, other granule-containing cells. Secretory granules originating from the mast cells in the nodes appear to pass along ductules, two or more of which make up a duct. Our results reveal a potential circulatory system whose anatomical structure and cellular content differ from the blood and lymph systems, and which may be involved in the transport of secretory granules.
AB - The blood and lymphatic systems are the two well-established circulatory systems. The existence of a third circulatory system representing acupuncture meridians was claimed in the 1960s. The very existence and function of the system, however, remained uncertain. We have found that microscopic nodes and ducts inside lymphatics, as well as on the surface of internal organs of the rat. The nodes and ducts are covered by a layer of EMP-3-positive spindle-shaped epithelium with, below, a layer of vWF-positive but CD31-negative endothelium. The nodes contain a variety of immune cells, usually enriched with mast cells, eosinophils, neutrophils and histiocytes, as well as chromaffin cells, other granule-containing cells. Secretory granules originating from the mast cells in the nodes appear to pass along ductules, two or more of which make up a duct. Our results reveal a potential circulatory system whose anatomical structure and cellular content differ from the blood and lymph systems, and which may be involved in the transport of secretory granules.
KW - EMP-3-positive epithelium
KW - Granulocytes
KW - Intralymphatic nodes and duct
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U2 - 10.1016/j.cyto.2012.07.016
DO - 10.1016/j.cyto.2012.07.016
M3 - Article
C2 - 22884518
AN - SCOPUS:84866753708
VL - 60
SP - 587
EP - 592
JO - Cytokine
JF - Cytokine
SN - 1043-4666
IS - 2
ER -