Histology of ganglion cells - Quick Histology

Added: 2026-05-07

[00:00:03]Alright. Now, let's focus in a little bit more on  the ganglion so we can look a little bit more in detail at a ganglion cell. So here we have an  image of a ganglion cell direct from our atlas on Kenhub and we know that this is a ganglion  cell because of its location. The cells are in close proximity to the nerve fibers and are  within a bulge enclosed by a capsule and the capsule is continuous with the epineurium and the  perineurium. This bulge is therefore a ganglion.

[00:00:27]The second reason we can tell it's a ganglion  cell is by the nearby cells. So each ganglion cell is surrounded by satellite glial cells  which are known to support ganglion cells.

[00:00:37]Now let's have a look at the parts of a  ganglion cell. So at the end of the day, a neuron is just a cell. So it has the  same basic components as most cells.

[00:00:45]These are of course located within the  ganglion cell. So let's highlight some of the features of our histology slide just  here. So here is the cell body containing the cytosol and organelles of the neuron. Strictly  speaking, the cell body does not include the nucleus or the nucleolus. And on that note,  here is the nucleus keeping our DNA safe.

[00:01:05]And now here's the nucleolus which is the  factory producing ribosomes and ribosomal RNA to be used in protein synthesis. There are also  the other usual organelles but they're probably a bit too small to be seen in this image  so examples of these are the mitochondria, the ribosomes, the endoplasmic  reticulum and the Golgi apparatus.

[00:01:25]There are a couple of neuron specific structures  to note which again are not visible here but we're gonna talk about them anyway. The  first are the Nissle bodies which can be demonstrated best by staining with a basophilic  substance. Nissle bodies are equivalent to rough endoplasmic reticulum and sometimes appear  as large granules within the cell body.

[00:01:41]The second to mention are neurofibrils also  known as neurofilaments and these are believed to provide structural support to the neuron and  extend from the cell body all the way along the axon. One component which can be seen on this  slide is the presence of lipofuscin granules and these are a brownish pigment which stains  to show this sort of maroon color on Leidwig stain as in the image here and lipofuscin  is formed as a byproduct of metabolism and accumulates as the cell ages. Abnormally high  quantities can indicate disease so this group of diseases are known as lipofuscinoses.  Lipofuscin granules are also formed in other cells with high metabolic turnover  such as cardiac and endocrine cells. Okay.

[00:02:20]So we've analyzed the inside of a ganglion cell.  Let's now briefly look at a cell in the ganglion that isn't a ganglion cell. Satellite  glial cells, as with all glial cells, have a supportive role in the nervous  system, kind of like the fans cheering on their favorite team. We can see them  highlighted in this slide surrounding the ganglion cells. Satellite glial cells form  a continuous sheath around ganglion cells, and they're responsible for controlling  the microenvironment around neurons.

[00:02:44]However, their exact role has not  really been described in detail.

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