List of abbreviations		 Vocabulary
of micros-
copic
anatomy
specialist terms
explained in
English +
German

Every attempt was made to provide correct information and labelling, however any liability for eventual errors or incompleteness is rejected!
dieser Seite

Editor:
Dr. med.
H. Jastrow
Conditions
of use
Overview rough endoplasmic reticulum (RER):
Pages with explanations are linked to the text below the images when available
Detail of
RER (monkey)		 RER secreting vesicles
(only on right at bottom)
rat seminal gland		 RER in a cell of the
exocrine pancreas (monkey)		 RER in a plasma
cell (monkey)		 dilated RER in a Bowmann's
nasal gland cell (monkey)		 RER in liver cells
(rat)
dilated RER of
a plasma cell (rat)		 Detail: dilated RER and
primary Lysosome		 RER & Golgi-Apparatus
of a plasma cell (rat)		 dilated RER of a
Fibroblast (rat)		 RER of a human
plasma cell		 lots of RER in a chief cell
of the stomach (pig)
RER in Nissl bodies,
ganglion cell (guinea pig)		 detail: Nissl body
= RER + ribosomes		 RER + Nissl bodies, Pur-
kinje cell cerebellum (rat)		 formation of a Nissl
body cerebellum (rat)		 isolated RER tubes
neuron cerebral cortex (rat)		 RER in an endocrine cell 
adenohypophysis (rat)
 human plasma cell RER, pharyngeal
tonsil (Tonsilla pharyngea)		 detail:
cytoplasm		 human plasma cell RER 2
Tonsilla pharyngea		 detail 1:
cytoplasm		 detail 2:
RER		 detail 3:
RER		 parallel RER,
parotid gland (rat)
human plasma cell
with RER		 plasma cell: RER
(human)		 RER + lipofuszin-
vesicle, human plasma cell		 RER of a human
plasma celll		 RER + primary lysosomes
of a human plasma cell		 partly dilated RER,
parotid gland (rat)
The granular endoplasmic reticulum (Terminologia histologica: Reticulum endoplasmicum granulosum) is a complex network of membranous tubules, vesicles and flat cisternae. Ribosomes are bound to its outer surfaces in a quite regular pattern.
Its paired membranes have a distance of 20-60 nm. Dilatation of the RER is seen when high protein synthesis and storage is necessary, The RER membranes may be outfoldings of the outer nuclear membrane, resulting in a continuity of perinuclear and RER inner space.
RER collects, stores and transports proteins that are synthesised by the ribosomes anchored to the outer membrane of the RER. Many of these proteins are not for the cell itself but for secretion.
RER forms small vesicles that are transported either to the Golgi-apparatus or to the cell membrane. The proteinaceous content of these vesicles is released after membrane fusion.
The greater the protein synthesis of a cell, the higher its content in RER. High amounts are usually seen in plasma cells, exocrine pancreas cells, neurons, osteo-, chondro- and fibroblasts.
A continuity of rough into smooth ER is possible and may be seen e.g.,  in cells of the liver. In neurons, RER occurs in parallel membrane plates and is associated with free ribosomes as Nissl-body (chromatophilic substance or Tigroid-substance; Terminologia histologica: Substantia chromatophilica).
In light microscopic stains RER is basophilic since its ribosomes bind messenger ribonucleic acids; RNAs. The latter carry the genetic information for the amino acid sequences of proteins synthetised in the RER in the process of translation.

--> smooth ER, ribosomes, cytoplasm, Golgi-apparatus, nuclear membrane, secretory vesicles, plasma cells
--> Electron microscopic atlas Overview
--> Homepage of the workshop

Three pictures were kindly provided by Prof. H. Wartenberg; further images, page & copyright H. Jastrow.