Intracytoplasmic junctions in cardiac muscle cells

Abstract

JUNCTIONAL STRUCTURES FORMED BY TWO PARTS OF THE PLASMA MEMBRANE OF THE SAME CARDIAC MUSCLE CELL WERE OBSERVED IN VENTRICULAR MYOCARDIUM OF: a) patients with neoplasms, aortic valvular disease or idiopathic hypertrophic subaortic stenosis and b) dogs subjected to prolonged normothermic anoxic cardiac arrest. Most of these structures had features of desmosomes; other, more complex structures had components with features of desmosomes, fasciae adherentes and nexuses, and, therefore, resembled intercalated discs. These intracytoplasmic junctions were localized to: a) the peripheral cytoplasm at the sides or ends of cells, b) narrow invaginations of plasma membranes, c) narrow zones of deep, broad plasmalemmal invaginations and d) narrow branches of T tubules. In patients with idiopathic hypertrophic subaortic stenosis or aortic valvular disease and in the dogs subjected to anoxic cardiac arrest, intracytoplasmic junctions were observed in hypertrophied or degenerated muscle cells which were located in areas of fibrosis and which showed loss of contact with adjacent cells. In patients with neoplasms, intracyto-plasmic junctions were found in degenerated cells which were located in areas of interstitial edema and which also showed loss of contact with adjacent cells. Our observations suggest that remodeling of cell surfaces following loss of intercellular contact is the most likely mechanism of formation of intracytoplasmic junctions.