Ultrastructural and morphometric studies of nonsecretory neurons of the rat supraoptic nucleus.

Ultrastructural and morphometric studies were made on nonsecretory and complementarily neurosecretory neurons of the rat supraoptic nucleus. 6% of perimeter of nonsecretory neuronal perikarya was covered by presynaptic endings. The value was well in agreement with that of interneurons elsewhere. The covering ratio of neurosecretory neurons was 12%. The perikarya of nonsecretory and neurosecretory neurons bear an average of 14 and 49 axon terminals, respectively. Nonsecretory neurons should be interneurons, receiving much less information than neurosecretory neurons.