Organization of the stalk system on electrocytes in mormyrid weakly electric fish Campylomormyrus compressirostris

Abstract

The adult electric organ in weakly electric mormyrid fish consists of action-potential-generating electrocytes, structurally and functionally modified skeletal muscle cells. The electrocytes have a disc-shaped portion and, on one of its sides, numerous thin processes, termed stalklets. These unite to stalks leading to a single main stalk that carries the innervation site. Here, we describe the 3-dimensional layout of the stalklet/stalk system in adult Campylomormyrus compressirostris by differential interference contrast microscopy and confocal fluorescence microscopy. Using antibodies against Na+/K+-ATPase α-subunit and plasma membrane Ca2+-ATPase, we show that these ion pumps are differentially distributed over the stalklet/stalk system, with plasma membrane Ca2+-ATPase being enriched on the stalklet membrane. Stalklets are distributed and organized in a quite uniform pattern on the posterior face of the electrocyte disc and fuse to terminal stalks. The latter then unite in a mostly dichotomic mode to stalks of increasing thickness, with the main stalk measuring about 100 µm in diameter. We further analyse the structural organization of stalklets and stalks, with a characteristic cytoskeletal system of bundled actin filaments in the centre and nuclei in subsurface position. These results suggest that the stalklet/stalk system is adapted in its structural layout to generate an action potential highly synchronized over the entire disc-portion of the electrocyte, accounting for the short electric organ discharge in this species. Our results suggest that actin-related proteins overexpressed in electrocytes, as shown previously by transcriptome analysis, may be involved in the organization of the unique F-actin system in stalklets and stalks.