The blood cells of the Antarctic icefish Chaenocephalus aceratus Lonnberg: light and electron microscopic observations

Peripheral blood and haemopoietic tissues of spleen and kidney of the icefish, Chaenocephalus aceratus were examined using LM and EM techniques. The peripheral blood contained cellular elements from all the recognized cell lines usually seen in other teleost groups. Erythrocytes were very rare; when found, they were mature or senile and fragile. Thrombocytes of two morphologies, several cell types considered to be part of the lymphoid series and monocytes/macrophages were present. Two distinctive types of granulocytes also were found; their morphologies and granulation were so different from teleost granulocytes hitherto described that their identification was impossible.