HYPOPHYSEAL MORPHOLOGY 



219 



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Fk;. 3,30. Election micioamphs illustiatiug another gonadotroph I'lom tlie anterior pitui- 

 tary of a young adult male rat. Like the cell in Figure 3.29, this cell can be identified as a 

 gonadotroph on the basis of its rounded contours, the size of its secretory granules (maximal 

 diameter ca. 150 m^), and elongated mitochondria {m) with a dense internal matrix. The 

 area occupied by the Golgi complex is seen directly to the right of the nucleus. It is out- 

 lined by a number of relatively empty-appearing vacuoles {vac). 



This gonadotroph differs from the follicle-stimulating hormone gonadotroph illustrated in 

 Figure 3.29 in several respects: the nucleus (iV) is more dense and shows a deep infolding, 

 the secretory granules {gr) are aggregated into clumps, and no large vesicles of the endo- 

 plasmic reticulum are present. In addition, there are a number of relatively open areas 

 visible in the cytoplasm (arrows) which are occupied only by a sparse, flocculent precipitate. 

 The endoplasmic reticulum {ex) is seen here in the form of tiny tubular profiles. Gonado- 

 trophs with these features have been associated with the secretion of luteinizing hormone or 

 interstitial cell-stimulating hormone (Farquhar and Rinehart, 1954a; Farquhar and Rine- 

 hart, 1955). 



A portion of an acidophil (^-1) with larger secretory granules is present above the gonado- 

 troph. X 11,700. 



