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Biophysical Journal 41: 359-366 (1983)
© 1983 the Biophysical Society

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Evidence of inherent spontaneous polarization in the metazoan integument epithelia.

H Athenstaedt and H Claussen

ABSTRACT

The live integument epithelia of the metazoa have an inherent spontaneous polarization (an inherent permanent electric dipole moment) of corresponding direction perpendicular to the integument surface. The existence of the inherent polarization was proved by their temperature dependence, i.e., by the pyroelectric (PE) effect. Quantitative PE measurements were carried out on a number of integument epithelia of vertebrates (a) in vivo, (b) on fresh epidermis preparations, and (c) on dead, air-dried epidermis specimens of the same species. The demonstrated spontaneous polarization is not dependent on the living state and not caused by a potential difference between the outer and inner integument surface. Dead, dry epidermis samples (potential difference less than 0.01 mV) as well as dead, dry integument appendages (bristles, hairs), and dead cuticles (of arthropoda, annelida, nematoda) showed an inherent dipole moment of the same orientation as the live epidermis. The findings reveal a relationship between the direction (vector) of inherent spontaneous polarization and that of growth (morphogenesis) in the animal epidermis, their appendages, and cuticles. We conclude (a) that the inherent spontaneous polarization is present in live individual epithelial cells of the metazoan integument, and (b) that this physical property is related to the structural and functional cell polarity of integument epithelia and possibly of other epithelia.






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Copyright © 1983 by the Biophysical Society.