The apical vesicles of the tuft cells in the main excretory duct of the rat submandibular gland by EFTEM-TEM tomography

Tuft cells exist in the hallow organs such as gastro-intestinal tract including the ducts of the rat salivary gland. They are characterized by an abundance of vesicles in apical cytoplasm and the prominent microvilli [1, 2]. The number of apical vesicles changes according to the length of the microvilli. The precise morphology of the apical vesicles and their function is not yet entirely clear. This study investigated the three-dimensional structure of the apical vesicles of tuft cells in the main excretory duct (MED) of the rat submandibular gland using a combination of transmission electron tomography and computer modeling.