The corticotroph of the rat adenohypophysis: A comparative study

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Abstract
The immunological and cytological specificity of antiserum to adrenocorticotrophic hormone was established and the corticotroph defined at the light microscopic level by immunocytochemistry. Our observations substantiated recent reports by several investigators. By comparing thin methacrylate sections with adjacent 1 μ‐methacrylate sections immunochemically stained with anti‐ACTH, the ACTH cell was identified at the ultrastructural level and its morphology studied. Using the criteria established at light and electron microscopic levels, the corticotroph was readily found in tissue which had been fixed in paraformaldehyde‐osmium mixture and embedded in epoxy resin. Ultrastructural changes in this cell in response to experimentally designed alterations in the pituitary ACTH levels confirmed this identification. The ACTH cell was likewise identified in glutaraldehyde‐fixed material. Thyrotrophs were tentatively defined. Several ultrastructural studies responsible for conflicting reports in the literature were investigated. It was concluded that the corticotroph is a unique cell type and that granule size and morphology remain important criteria for adenohypophyseal cell identification regardless of the fixation used. The need for a definitive immunocytochemical study of thyrotrophs at the ultrastructural level was recognized.

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