Intraepithelial nerve fibers in the rabbit ocular ciliary epithelium.

Ciliary processes, mainly iridial processes, of the adult rabbit eye were examined by electron microscopy. Intraepithelial nerve fibers were recognized in the ciliary epithelium. These were single, naked unmyelinated nerve fibers found between pigmented epitheliocytes but not between non-pigmented epitheliocytes. They displayed a beaded structure and contained in their dilated portions many clear vesicles, a few cored vesicles and filamentous mitochondria. Their possible functional significance is discussed.