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Electron Histochemical Localization of Acid Phos-phatase Activity in the Adrenal Medulla of Rats

Nature volume 214, pages 1243–1244 (1967)Cite this article

Abstract

SEVERAL workers1–4 have investigated the activity of acid and alkaline phosphatases in the normal adrenal medulla and in animals with hyperfunctioning adrenals due to various loading effects, such as insulin treatment and cold stress5,6. Naik and George3 found a correlation between the acid phosphatase activity and the increased synthesis of catechol amines and suggested that acid phosphatase is directly involved in the synthesis of adrenaline and noradrenaline. Our comparative ultra-structural studies on the adrenal medulla of rats, rabbits and frogs showed the presence of “microbodies” 0.4–0.5µ in diameter, surrounded by a single membrane. These “microbodies” were highly electron dense and resembled lysosomes in their sub-microscopic features. We therefore thought it worth while to look for a relationship between medullary acid phosphatase activity and the histo-chemical properties of the “microbodies” observed.

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  1. Department of Pathology, Postgraduate Medical School, Budapest

    I. BENEDECZKY

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  1. I. BENEDECZKY
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BENEDECZKY, I. Electron Histochemical Localization of Acid Phos-phatase Activity in the Adrenal Medulla of Rats. Nature 214, 1243–1244 (1967). https://doi.org/10.1038/2141243a0

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