glomus cell
The definitions used in this glossary of terminology either have been provided by the authors of the articles, or have been extracted wholly or in part, or paraphrased from the following sources: The American Medical Association Encyclopedia of Medicine, Charles B. Clayman, MD, Medical Editor, Random House, New York, 1989; Biotechnology from A to Z, 2d Edition, William Bains, Oxford University Press, New York, New York, 2002; A Dictionary of Genetics, 6th Edition, Robert C. King and William D. Stansfield, Oxford University Press, New York, New York, 2002; Dorland's Illustrated Medical Dictionary, 29th and 30th Editions, W. B. Saunders Company, Philadelphia, 2000, 2003; Genes VII, Benjamin Lewin, Oxford University Press, New York, New York, 2000; The Gale Encyclopedia of Genetic Disorders, Volumes I and II, Stacey L. Blachford, Ed., Thomson Learning, New York, New York, 2002; The Merriam-Webster Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, Inc., Springfield, Massachusetts, 1997; Molecular Biology of the Cell, 3rd Edition, Bruce Alberts, et al., Garland Publishing, 1994; The Random House Dictionary of the English Language, Unabridged Edition, 1966; Webster's Ninth New Collegiate Dictionary, 1991.
DEFINITION:
- glomus cell
-
1. Any of the moderately large specific epithelioid cells (type I) of the carotid body (see glomus caroticum) containing abundant cytoplasm and membrane-bound, electron-dense granules and having a few dendritic processes; they are richly supplied with nerve endings and are surrounded by cells without cytoplasmic granules (type II). Called also "glomerular cell."
2. Any of the modified smooth muscle cells with uniform nuclei, pale-staining cytoplasm, and indistinct margins that surround the arterial segment of a glomeriform arteriovenous anastomosis, which are richly innervated by fibers of the autonomic nervous system.