Abstract
An ultrastructural comparison of the two types of intrafusal muscle fibers in muscle spindles of the rat was undertaken. Discrete myofibrils with abundant interfibrillar sarcoplasm and organelles characterize the nuclear chain muscle fiber, while a continuous myofibril-like bundle with sparse interfibrillar sarcoplasm distinguishes the nuclear bag muscle fiber. Nuclear chain fibers possess well-defined and typical M bands in the center of each sarcomere, while nuclear bag fibers contain ill-defined M bands composed of two parallel thin densities in the center of the pseudo-H zone of each sarcomere. Mitochondria of nuclear chain fibers are larger and more numerous than they are in nuclear bag fibers. Mitochondria of chain fibers, in addition, often contain conspicuous dense granules, and they are frequently intimately related to elements of the sarcoplasmic reticulum (SR). Striking differences are noted in the organization and degree of development of the sarcotubular system. Nuclear bag fibers contain a poorly developed SR and T system with only occasional junctional couplings (dyads and triads). Nuclear chain fibers, in contrast, possess an unusually well-developed SR and T system and a variety of multiple junctional couplings (dyads, triads, quatrads, pentads, septads). Greatly dilated SR cisternae are common features of nuclear chain fibers, often forming intimate associations with T tubules, mitochondria, and the sarcolemma. Such dilatations of the SR were not encountered in nuclear bag fibers. The functional significance of these structural findings is discussed.