Abstract
This paper presents the results of light and electron microscope histochemical studies of muscle fiber types in the anuran tadpole tail.Two types of muscle fibers are distinguishable-the muscle fibers, (p.m. fibers) immediately below the layer of pigment cells of the skin; these are of smaller diameter and are abundant in sarcoplasm and mitochondria. The other type (i.m. fibers) is deep to the p.m. fibers; they are of relatively large diameter but contain less sarcoplasm and mitochondria.Histochemical staining methods reveal stronger lactate dehydrogenase and succinic dehydrogenase activity in the p.m. fibers compared to the i.m. fibers. However, phosphorylase activity was more intensely visualized in the i.m. than the p.m. fibers. By these light and electron microscope histochemical observations, the small peripheral muscle fibers and the large inner muscle fibers have been tentatively classified as red and white muscle respectively.The constant superficial distribution of the red muscle fiber in the tadpole tail is interesting and presents a unique condition for further study.
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