Reticular fiber

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Reticular fibers (from Latin rete , the network) consist of thin bundles of collagen fibrils (collagen type 3) and have a diameter of 0.2 to 1 µm. They are visible under a light microscope, but only through special colors , such as B. silver plating technique or PAS reaction , to be distinguished from other collagen fibers . Because of their affinity for silver salts, they turn black in the silver coloring and are called argyrophilic fibers. The reticular fibers are mainly found in the reticular connective tissue . They are also part of the basement membrane and form a supporting membrane around epithelial associations (e.g. glandular end pieces, kidney tubules) around capillaries, fat cells, muscle fibers, peripheral nerve fibers.

literature

  • Luiz Carlos Uchôa Junqueira, José Carneiro, Robert O. Kelley: Histology . 5., newly translated, revised. and updated edition, Springer, Berlin [u. a.] 2002, ISBN 3-540-41858-X .