Subsurface cisterns and lamellar bodies in the granule cells of the guinea-pig fascia dentata

Subsurface cisterns (SSC's) and less frequent lamellar bodies (LB's) were identified in the granule cells of the guinea-pig fascia dentata. Both structures, composed of flattened or collapsed agranular cisterns, are continuous with the regular rough endoplasmic reticulum and occasionally connected with each other forming LB-SSC complexes. The SSC's are apposed to glia, synaptic boutons, and nerve cell processes as well as to neighboring granule cells appearing here singly and in confronting pairs. The quantitative analysis of the various cisternal appositions compared to the distribution of the tissue components on the granule cell soma shows that the overwhelming majority of SSC's are related to glial cells.