Ultrastructural Studies of the Nucleus of Cancer Cells

To investigate ultrastructural characteristics of cancer cell nucleus, 29 cases of malignant tumors of 9 different types were examined. The common findings were marked irregularity of nuclear membrane with pronounced infoldings, clumping of heterochromatin along inner nuclear membrane, enlargement and disturbance of configuration and composition of nucleolus, and frequent observations of nuclear bodies and nuclear inclusions. These findings confirm what have been observed by light microscopy, and are also the signes that can be observed in hyperactive cells. Thus, ultrastructural characteristics of cancerous nucleus are the great variability of nuclear size, shape and composition, but none of them appear to be specific.