中文摘要：

胃肠道的大部分区域都存在着一种特殊的间质细胞——Cajal间质细胞（interstitial cells of Cajal,ICCs）。尽管在100多年前它们的存在就已被发现,但是直到最近几十年的研究才逐渐揭示了它们的功能。在胃肠道,ICCs被认为是平滑肌自发性节律性电活动,即＂基本电节律＂（又称＂慢波＂）的起搏细胞,并介导神经至平滑肌的神经信号传递活动。除胃肠道外,ICC样细胞同样存在于其它内脏平滑肌,如泌尿、生殖系统以及血管平滑肌等。本文仅就这些内脏平滑肌ICCs的功能做一简单综述。

英文摘要：

Interstitial cells of Cajal（ICCs） are located in most parts of the digestive system.Although they have been found over 100 years,their functions began to be unravelled only recently.ICCs are considered as pacemaker cells which elicit spontaneous rhythmic electric activity termed ＂basic electrical rhythm＂ or ＂slow waves＂ in gastrointestinal tract.Moreover,they also mediate neurotransmission from neurons to smooth muscle in gastrointestinal tract.ICC-like cells also exist in other visceral smooth muscles,such as urinary tract,genital system and vascular smooth muscle.In this paper we review the progress of research about the functions of visceral ICCs.