Cell junctions in the cyst envelope in the silkworm testis, Bombyx mori Linné.

The cell junctions of the cyst envelope in the testes of Bombyx mori were examined by electron miscroscopy utilizing a thin-sectioning technique following conventional fixation, tannic acid fixation and lanthanum tracer study, and also using a freeze-fracture technique. There are three kinds of junctions; septate junctions, gap junctions and tight junctions. Septate junctions are of the pleated type. Gap junctions are characterized by four electron-dense lines and three electron-lucent lines in the reduced intercellular spaces seen by thin-sectioning. They are of the "E" type, having clusters of intramembraneous particles on the E-fracture face. The most striking finding is the frequent presence of tight junctions on the fracture planes, while focally fused outer leaflets of the junctional unit membranes are rarely detected on thin-sectioned preparations. Tight junctions are characterized by branching zigzag ridges on the P-fracture face and complementary grooves on the E-fracture face. It is proposed that tight junctions are new morphological evidence of blood-germ cell barrier in an insect.