DPhaFIG 7: Marginal cells of the procorpus.

A. Illustration showing arrangement of marginal cells and muscle cells in the pharynx. (Image source: WormAtlas PhaFIG 7A.)
B&D. Transverse TEM section of marginal cells in an L2 larva.
B. Shading indicates different cell types. Muscle, green; marginal cells, purple. Inset indicates location of enlarged region within the intact pharynx.
D. Same image as in B, except without shading to show cellular details. (Image source: N2 L2 28-14 [D. Riddle] 436.)
C&E. Transverse TEM section of marginal cells in a dauer pharynx.
C. Shading as in panel B.
E. Same image as shown in panel C, without shading to show cellular details. (Image source: N2 starved dauer 50-6-2 [D. Riddle] 38M.)
D&E. Dauer marginal cells may contain thick intermediate filaments (IF) which are anchored by hemi-desmosomes (red arrows) between the apical membrane at the lumen and the basal lamina bordering the pseudocoelomic cavity. Mitochondria are visible in marginal cells of dauer and non-dauer larvae (m). At the apical membrane, the marginal cells are attached to neighboring muscle cells by adherens junctions (aj) linking them firmly to the pm muscles.

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