Effect of High Hydrostatic Pressures on Colchicine-Damaged Mast Cells of Peritoneal Fluid.

Abstract
The abnormally shaped mast cells found in the peritoneal fluid of colchicine-treated rats are affected by the application of high hydrostatic pressure. The changes observed under pressure include rounding up of the cell, suggesting that the abnormal morphology is maintained by a strongly gelated cytoplasm. Induction of localized foci of gelation by colchicine is postulated to explain the formation of polymorphic mast elements.