The rocker bone: a new kind of mineralised tissue?

In some Ophidiiform fishes, the anterior part of the swimbladder is thickened into a hard structure called the “rocker bone”, which is thought to play a role in sound production. Although this structure has been described as cartilage or bone, its nature is still unknown. We have made a thorough analysis of the rocker bone in Ophidion barbatum and compared it with both classical bone and cartilage. The rocker bone appears to be a new example of mineralisation. It consists of (1) a ground substance mainly composed of proteoglycans (mucopolysaccharide acid) and fibres and (2) a matrix containing small mineralised spherules composed of a bioapatite and fibrils. These spherules are embedded in mineralised cement of a similar composition to the spherules themselves. The rocker bone grows via the apposition of new apatite spherules at its periphery. These spherules are first secreted by the innermost fibroblast layer of the capsule contained in the rocker bone and then grow extracellularly. Blood vessels, which represent the only means of transport for matrix and mineral material, are numerous. They enter the rocker bone via the hyle and ramify towards the capsule. We propose to call this new kind of mineralised tissue constituting the rocker bone “frigolite” (the Belgian name for styrofoam) in reference to the presence of spherules of different sizes and the peculiarity of the rocker bone in presenting a smooth surface when fractured

Neuroimmune connections in ovine pharyngeal tonsil: potential site for prion neuroinvasion

Recent studies have proved the possible implication of nasal associated lymphoid tissues, mainly the pharyngeal tonsil, in prion pathogenesis. However, the mechanisms of this neuroinvasion are still being debated. To determine the potential sites for prion neuroinvasion inside the ovine pharyngeal tonsil, the topography of neurofilaments heavy (200 kDa) (NFH), neurofilaments light (70 kDa) (NFL) and glial fibrillar acidic protein (GFAP) was semi-quantitatively analysed inside the different compartments of the tonsil. The results showed that the most innervated areas were the interfollicular area and the connective tissue located beneath the respiratory epithelium. Even if the germinal centre of the lymphoid follicles was poorly innervated, the existence of rare follicular dendritic cell-nerve synapses inside the germinal centre indicates that this mechanism of neuroinvasion is possible but unlikely to be unique. The host PRNP genotype did not influence the pattern of innervation in these different tonsil compartments, unlike age: an increase of nerve endings in a zone of high trafficking cells beneath the respiratory epithelium occurred with ageing. A minimal age-related increase of innervation inside the lymphoid follicles was also observed. An increase in nerve fibre density around the lymphoid follicles, in an area rich in mobile cells able to transport PrPd, could ensure a more efficient infectivity, not in the early phase but in the advanced phase of lymphoinvasion after amplification of PrPd, or could act as direct site of entry during neuroinvasion