Polysaccharide Fibres in Mammalian Connective Tissue

Abstract

THE presence of fibres which differ chemically and physically from the contiguous collagen and elastin in mammalian and other connective tissue has been reported previously¹. Four types of fibres were defined upon the basis of morphological variations as observed with the optical microscope and described as redimiculous, vitreous, jointed and barbed². None of these exhibits hydrothermal contraction associated with collagen, and they all resist acid hydrolysis and digestion by collagenase and elastase. Mechanical deformation of individual fibres produces sharp fractures with the vitreous, jointed and barbed types, while the redimiculous variety exhibits predominantly plastic distortion. The absence of the elastic recovery associated with normal protein fibres of connective tissue, added to the other differences, indicates a molecular structure completely different from that of the fibrous proteins.