Linear dichroism phenomena investigated on collagen bundles of stained sections from normal Achilles tendons of the rat and the guinea-pig have revealed an ordering arrangement of the dye molecules due to the orientation of the stained substrate (proteins and acid mucopolysaccharides) [ROMHANYI,...

Linear dichroism phenomena investigated on collagen bundles of stained sections from normal Achilles tendons of the rat and the guinea-pig have revealed an ordering arrangement of the dye molecules due to the orientation of the stained substrate (proteins and acid mucopolysaccharides) [ROMHANYI, 1963; VIDAL, 1963, 1970; VIDAL and MELLO, 1970; MELLO and VIDAL, 1973]. Also, tendons impregnated with metaIs display anisotropic properties which can be evaluated histophotometrically [MELLO and VIDAL, 1972]. Acid mucopolysaccharides have been found in human Sharpey's fibers and at the surface of the cementum; these molecules are complexed with proteins, play a part in the form birefringence of the collagen and were visually shown as presenting linear dichroism characteristics [VIDAL, 1964a,b,c]. In the present work, the occurrence of mucopolysaccharides is investigated histochemically in the rat acellular cementum. Moreover, the orientation of protein and polysaccharide macromolecules, which make up the collagen bundles of the cementum, is studied and cornpared with that from published data on soft tissue collagen, in order to raise occasional differences as a function of molecular arrangements of the protein-mucopolysaccharide complexes in these structures.

FUNDAÇÃO DE AMPARO À PESQUISA DO ESTADO DE SÃO PAULO - FAPESP

1968/748; 1970/371

CONSELHO NACIONAL DE DESENVOLVIMENTO CIENTÍFICO E TECNOLÓGICO - CNPQ

12607/1969

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