Distribution of actin in isolated seminiferous epithelia and denuded tubule walls of the rat.

We have studied the distribution of actin, using NBD-phallacidin as a probe, in isolated sheets of seminiferous epithelia and denuded tubule walls of the rat. Sheets of intact seminiferous epithelia were separated from tubule walls using EDTA in PBS. The isolated epithelia and denuded tubule walls were fixed, mounted on slides, made permeable with cold acetone (-20 degrees C), and then treated with NBD-phallacidin. Actin was observed in myoid cells, in ectoplasmic specializations of Sertoli cells, and in Sertoli cell regions adjacent to tubulobulbar processes of late spermatids. In myoid cells, filament bundles course in circular and longitudinal directions relative to the tubule wall. In Sertoli cells viewed at an angle perpendicular to the epithelial base, actin filaments in ectoplasmic specializations adjacent to junctional complexes circumscribe the bases of the cells. Filament bundles in ectoplasmic specializations adjacent to germ cells closely follow the contour of and are arranged parallel to the long axis of the developing acrosome. Sertoli cell regions adjacent to tubulobulbar processes of late spermatids stain intensely with NBD-phallacidin. Isolated seminiferous epithelia, combined with NBD-phallacidin as a probe for actin, provide an ideal model system in which to study further the contractile properties of Sertoli cell ectoplasmic specializations and the possible involvement of these structures in events that occur during spermatogenesis.