The reflecting structure in the iridescent cornea of the serranid teleost Nemanthias carberryi

Abstract

The serranid fish Nemanthias carberryi shows a blue-green corneal iridescence, dependent on the angle of incidence of the illuminating light. The reflexion occurs in the corneal endothelial cells which contain arrays of oriented lamellae. The lamellae are derived from endoplasmic reticulum; they are bounded by membranes with subajcent ribosomes, and have a central pair of membranes. In glutaraldehyde-fixed material the lamellae were 71.5 nm thick and the spaces between them approximately 125 nm wide.