Growth of striated muscle fibres in the M. lateralis of the European eel Anguilla anguilla (L.) (Pisces, Teleostei)
Willemse, J.J.; van den Berg, P.G.
Journal of Anatomy 125(Pt 3): 447-460
1978
ISSN/ISBN: 0021-8782 PMID: 640952 Document Number: 129602
Growth of red and white muscle fibers in the eel A. anguilla were studied. Blocks of muscular tissue from the anal region of the eels was fixed in Bouin's fluid. Fiber diameters were measured in samples of 100 contiguous fibers sectioned exactly perpendicular to the fiber direction. The areas of the cross sections of the fibers were compared. The red fibers of eels < 10 cm were unique in that their growth involved increase in diameter only. Growth of the red fibers in eels > 10 cm, and of the white fibers in eels at all lengths considered (up to 40 cm) was characterized by an increase in number and diameter, the relative importance of these 2 methods of growth being related to factors other than the length of the animal. The positions of the small, new fibers suggest an origin from satellite cells split off from the larger fibers.