STUDIES OF LIVING NERVES

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Abstract
In living Triturus viridescens nerve fibers were directly observed for several mos. during the processes of growth and myelination, degeneration and regeneration, irritation and recovery. The phenomena of nerve growth and repair in salamanders (urodeles) are fundamentally like those in frog tadpoles (anurans). Case histories are given showing the progress of growing nerve tips as they migrate outward by ameboid movement toward the skin, thus forming the earliest cutaneous nerves. Observations on sheath cells of Schwann include records of their movements, their proliferation by mitosis, their transfer from one nerve fiber to another, and their role in the formation of the myelin sheath. Complete case histories showing the origin and growth of myelin-sheath segments were obtained. The response of the myelin sheath to irritating stimuli, and its restoration after traumatic degeneration, or after trophic degeneration, are described. Cine-photomicrographic records were made.