Calyx (anatomy) kidney, a conglomeration of two or three minor calyces to form a major calyx, or the Calyx of Held, a particularly large synapse in the mammalian auditory central nervous system, named by H. Held in his 1893 article "Die centrale Gehörleitung", due to its flower-petal-like shape. In male insects, a funnel-shaped expansion of the basal part of the "vas deferens" (part of the seminal duct). Also in entomology, a flattened cap of neuropile in an insect brain (a component of the corpus pedunculatum) and by certain female insects, an expansion of the oviduct into which the ovarioles open. Calyx (anatomy)
Calyx of Held embryonic calyx formation. One characteristic that distinguishes Eph proteins and their receptors from other signaling systems is their ability to transmit information bidirectionally. Forward and reverse signaling in VCN and MNTB cells is essential for the proper number and formation of VCN and ipsilateral MNTB projections in the calyx. Eph proteins also ensure that while axons pass through the ipsilateral MNTB, branching and final termination of these projections only occur in the contralateral MNTB, possibly because the proteins are only targeted towards specific regions on the axons. Overall, there are two ultrastructural changes that occur in the calyx of Held.