Infradian Rhythm of the Content of Secretory Granules in Pinealocyte Cytoplasm in Mice and Rats

Abstract

The numerical density of secretory granules dense-core vesicles (DCV) in the cytoplasm of pinealocytes of the pineal gland was estimated by transmission electron microscopy in male white mice and Wistar rats. The 3-day biorhythm and lunaphase changes in the DCV content in the perikaryon and the processes of pinealocytes, which are manifested significantly in different seasons of the year, are established. The three-day biorhythm in adult male mice in comparison with younger male rats is not expressed uniformly in different phases of the moon. The in-phase manifestation of infradian biorhythms in different species of animals during the year with an unchanged daily photophase indicates the existence of common external synchronizers for mammals of these biorhythms that are not associated with the light/dark cycle.