Innervation of the Intrinsic Muscles of the Eye

Summary All nerve fibers in the ciliary and sphincter muscles degenerate following extirpation of the ciliary ganglion. All nerve fibers to the dilator pupillae degenerate after extirpation of the superior cervical ganglion. The terminal nervous structure in these muscles is not independent of the axons but undergoes degeneration with the latter following extirpation of their cells of origin. Terminal branches of the axons seem to enter the cytoplasm of the muscle cells.