MICROSCOPICAL ASPECTS CONCERNING THE PRESENCE AND DISTRIBUTION OF MITOCHONDRIA IN INTRALOBULAR AND INTERLOBULAR DUCTS FROM RAT PAROTID GLAND

Abstract

Saliva secreted by acini from parotid gland is concentrated in the excretory ducts. This study aims to highlight certain microscopical aspects concerning the presence, density and disposition of mitochondria in intralobular and interlobular ducts from parotid parenchyma in rats. In the intralobular ducts’ segment lined by cuboidal cells, mitochondria are present throughout the whole cytoplasm, without a regular arrangement. In the area where cells are columnar, mitochondria become more numerous and most of them are disposed in the basal half and have a regular disposition (perpendicular to the basal pole). In the interlobular ducts, mitochondria are somehow less, but their disposition is similar to the one in the previous segment. In intralobular ducts with a thin wall, mitochondria have an irregular disposition and are present throughout the whole cytoplasm, while in striated and interlobular ducts, they have a regular disposition, perpendicularly on the basal pole of the cell and most of them are concentrated in the basal half of the cell.