Calcitonin cell population and distribution in the thyroid gland of the rat

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Abstract
Calcitonin‐containing cells (C cells) were identified in male Wistar white rats using an immunoperoxidase technique. They occupied a central position within the thyroid; very few were found peripherally, inferiorly, and superiorly; and none were present in the isthmus. The number of calcitonin‐containing cells present per gram of body weight increased with age up to 70 days and had declined by 100 days. Determining the true total C‐cell count through the entire thyroid is a very laborious procedure. However, a simple estimate of this total count can be made; the total number of C cells in every tenth section (6 μm) of thyroid was found to be highly correlated with the weight of the animal expressed as an allometric function. A better estimate can be derived from counts of just three sections: the tenth, twentieth, and thirtieth after the section of greatest cross sectional area.