210 DR. W. N. F. WOODLAND ON THE 



that " we have not been able to obtain sections which show the 

 direct transition to the tubular glands, but there is no doubt that 

 the epithelium takes on fairly suddenly a markedly glandular 

 aspect." 



A conspicuous feature in the gas gland of Zeus is the presence, 

 among cells of the ordinary size, of giant cells and nuclei six to 

 ten tiroes as large (PI. IX. tig. 65). Similar giant cells also occur in 

 Ophidium harhatimn, Fierasfer acus, Peristethus cataphr actus ^ 

 Balistes capriscus, Trigla gnrnardus, and, in some instances, in 

 Gohius paganellus and in other genera. The only suggestion 

 concerning the origin of these giant cells with which I am 

 acquainted is that implied by Deineka (29), who states that the 

 similar giant cells in Perca give rise by amitotic division of the 

 niocleits to groups of cells of the usual size — the implication being 

 that the giant cells are primary products of development and cells 

 of normal size secondary products. My observations have led me 

 to a somewhat different conclusion. In the first place, in many 

 gas glands containing giant cells {Zeus, e. g.), these giant cells 

 usually lie more or less remote from the region where the blood- 

 vessels enter the gland — giant cells are nearly always found 

 towards the periphery or edge of the gland epithelium ; secondly, 

 there is every gradation in size from the smallest to the giant 

 gas gland cells, the smallest always being situated in those 

 portions of the gland next the large blood vessels, i. e. at the bases 

 of the folds of folded glands and at the " hub " or point of entry of 

 the blood-vessels in massive glands (see figs. 46, 49, 52, on Plates Y., 

 VI., YII. e.g.) in addition to other regions, the cells of intermediate 

 size like the smallest cells being found in most regions of the gland 

 and the giant cells, as already mentioned, towards the peripheral 

 portions of the gland * ; thirdly, among the smallest cells mitotic 

 figures are quite common in many of my prepai-ations, but among 

 the intermediate and giant cells it is rare to find mitosis, though 

 I have seen several cases of it in intermediate cells and once or 

 twice even in cells approaching giant size ; finally, I can confirm 

 Deineka in his statement that the great majority of giant cells and 

 many intermediate cells divide amitotically. Figure 63 (PI. VIII.) 

 shows the appearance of the ej^ithelium at the base of the gland of 

 Zeus, where the capillaries of the rete enter. It will be observed 

 that in this genus many of the basal portions of the massive 

 epithelium are syncytial in character, no cell-outlines being distin- 

 guishable, and that occasionally mitotic figures are present among 

 the nviclei of these syncytia. As we proceed from these syncytial 

 masses towards the periphery of the gland, cell-outlines soon become 

 more and more distinct and larger in size, but, as we might 

 anticipate, though the giant cells are usually found towards the 

 periphery of the gland, j^et giant nuclei and nuclei of a size 

 intermediate between these and the smallest nuclei are to be found 



* Reis remarks that in Sao'ffus (in wliicli there are no giant cells) the cells are' 

 largest next the blood-vessels and decrease in size towards the periphery', where they 

 are squamous in chai'acter. This is not the case in iny preparations of Sarcjus 

 rondeletii, where the cells are practically uniform in size at all depths of the gland, 

 except perhaps at the ^'ery edge, where they are squamous. 



