Histological and biochemical characterization of von Ebner's glands in the Syrian hamster; comparison with rat von Ebner's glands

Abstract

We report here for the first time a morphological description and observations on some of the secretory proteins of the von Ebner's lingual salivary glands (VEG) of the Syrian hamster. Hamster VEG were macroscopically less distinct, but histologically similar to rat VEG. VEG extracts of hamster and rat were assayed for lipase, alpha-amylase and peroxidase activities. Unlike rat VEG, which is rich in lipase activity, hamster VEG extract had no detectable lipase activity and did not react with antibodies to either rat lingual lipase or human gastric lipase in Western blots. Immunohistochemical reactions with the anti-rat lingual lipase antibody were very weak in hamster VEG and strong in rat VEG. Moderate alpha-amylase enzyme activities and immunohistochemical reactions were demonstrated in both hamster and rat VEG. Peroxidase activity was negligible in the VEG, unlike the high activity in the submandibular glands of both species. An 18 kDa von Ebner's gland protein (VEGP), a member of the lipocalin superfamily of hydrophobic ligandbinding proteins, was abundant in rat VEG, but not detected in hamster VEG. Thus, hamster VEG differs from rat VEG in macroscopic appearance and the absence of lipase and VEGP. It is similar to rat VEG histologically and with regard to the presence of alpha-amylase and absence of peroxidase.

Papillary Architecture and Functional Characterization of Mucosubstances in the Sheep Tongue

“…In some mammals (Tandler et al, ; Gargiulo et al, ; Pedini et al, ; Triantafyllou et al, , Paliwal et al, ), the histochemical data have revealed that neutral mucosubstances and sulphated mucins exist in both seromucous and von Ebner's glands (although their staining intensities differ); however, carboxylated mucins do not exist in either gland type. Functional considerations of these results indicate that differences in mucins secreted from glands, together with histomorphological differences in different parts of the tongue, reflect an adaptation to physiological requirements, including protection against bacterial colonization.…”

Morphologic diversity of the minor salivary glands of the rat: fertile ground for studies in gene function and proteomics

“…It follows that the minor salivary glands of rats also ought to have important physiologic roles. Some of these, such as digestion, taste, and salivary regulators of pH and oral fl ora, have been the subjects of considerable study, but mostly with VEG (DeNigris et al 1988, Hamosh and Scow 1973, Field and Hand 1987, Schmale et al 1990, Leinonen et al 2001, Paliwal et al 2006). …”

“…1). Survey photomicrographs showing the location of the glands have been published by Hand (1970) and Paliwal et al (2006); the latter paper also was illustrated with photographs showing the glistening gland bodies in a slice through the vallate papilla. The acini stain moderately with PAS (not illustrated), but do not stain with AB (Fig.…”

“…Aquaporin 5 (AQP5) has been localized to the apical (Hamosh and Scow 1973, Hamosh 1978, Roberts and Jaffe 1986,Roberts et al 1987, Field et al 1999, Triantafyllou et al 2002, peroxidase (Paliwal et al 2006), and VEG proteins 1 and 2 (Schmale et al 1990, Kock et al 1992, 1994. Alpha-amylase (Field et al 2001, Paliwal et al 2006 and lingual lipase (Roberts and Jaffe 1986, Roberts et al 1987, Hand 1999, Field et al 2001, Paliwal et al 2006) have been localized immunohistochemically to the acinar secretory granules. Parotid secretory protein (PSP) also has been localized to the acinar secretory granules (Hand 1999).…”

Immunohistochemical and Immunocytochemical Localization of Amylase in Rat Parotid Glands and von Ebner's Glands by Ion Etching-Immunoscanning Electron Microscopy

“…Therefore, it is suspected that von Ebner’s glands differ from parotid glands in terms of the mechanism and role of amylase secretion. One immunohistochemical study involving an enzymatic method has been reported [24]. However, as far as we know, there is no report of the immunocytochemical localization of amylase in von Ebner’s glands.…”