A section of muscle tissue

[Naphthalene]

Hello!
This is a section of mouse muscle, stained with hematoxylin and eosin.
This is a 8 micron section made with a Brunel rocker. You can see pink bundles of actin inside the muscle cells. And you can also see blood vessels with erythrocytes (red blood cells) - these cells apparently are elasic and change their shape to accomodate the inner volume of the vessel they travel through you can see the round ones and the stretched ones.

[jwsmith]

Interesting.
Ability of blood cells to elongate to accomodate the ID of vessels.....I didn't know that.
One does not ever see that elongation on a "smeer" mount.

Judd

[billbillt]

Hi Napthalene,

I am with jwsmith.. I also never knew this trait with red blood cells... You learn something new everyday... Thanks for this... BillT

[JimT]

Good image and lesson. Thanks for posting.

[75RR]

... these cells apparently are elasic and change their shape to accomodate the inner volume of the vessel they travel through ...

Interesting. Is this a mouse thing ?

[Naphthalene]

Hello!
Thank you all for the replies!

Interesting. Is this a mouse thing ?

No, it applies to all erythrocytes. Actually all the cells are elastic to some degree (except hardened bone), but the walls of the blood vessel are normally much stronger than the blood cells they pump through.

[vasselle]

Bonjour.
Très belle photo.
Cordialement seb