Electron microscopic studies of the morphology of the corneal stroma in the rabbit cornea using the freeze-fracture technique.

The morphology of the corneal stroma in the rabbit cornea was investigated under the electron microscope using the freeze-fracture technique. The collagen fibrils were closely packed into collagen bundles. In the freeze-fracture replicas the amorphous ground substance could not be demonstrated. At the stroma membranes were shown with crater-shaped depressions on the P-face and corresponding elevations on the E-face. Regarding the topographical relationships between the membranes and other parts of the fibroblasts, it was concluded in this investigation that the crater-shaped structures probably constitute pores in the plasma membrane of fibroblasts.