An electron microscopic study of the leptomeninx and associated cells of the aged mouse

Abstract

The ultrastructure of the leptomeninx was examined in mice aged 25, 28 and 31 months. Apart from occasional lipofuscin granules there were no obvious age related changes in the ultrastructure of leptomeningeal cells. Granular pial cells usually contained large honeycomb bodies and were a prominent feature of the ageing leptomeninx but in contrast leptomeningeal macrophages showed no evidence of phagocytic activity suggesting that cell death or degeneration was not a feature of cells of the leptomeninx even in extremely old mice.