ELECTRON MICROSCOPY OF HUMAN VAGINAL EPITHELIUM UNDER NORMAL AND EXPERIMENTAL CONDITIONS

Abstract

Recent studies have demonstrated that several types of intercellular connections maintain the architecture of the human epithelium (Karrer, 1960; Burgos & Vargas Linares, 1970). Several types of cell junctions were also recognized between the vaginal epithelial cells of a number of species: guinea-pig (Burgos & Wislocki, 1958), hamster (Vargas Linares & Burgos, 1965; Vargas Linares, 1968), rat (Schuchner, Paczy & Asch, 1972) and human (Vargas Linares & Burgos, 1968; Burgos & Vargas Linares, 1970). The present study was designed to show the ultrastructural changes of the human vaginal epithelium under the influence of the local chelating action of EDTA and the subsequent recovery of the epithelium. The biopsies were performed on clinically normal vaginal mucosae. Three biopsies were obtained from each of the eight women