Structural and ultrastructural studies on the developing vomeronasal sensory epithelium in the grass snake Natrix natrix (Squamata: Colubroidea)

Abstract

The sensory olfactory epithelium and the vomeronasal sensory epithelium (VSE) are characterized by continuous turnover of the receptor cells during postnatal life and are capable of regeneration after injury. The VSE, like the entire vomeronasal organ, is generally well developed in squamates and is crucial for detection of pheromones and prey odors. Despite the numerous studies on embryonic development of the VSE in squamates, especially in snakes, an ultrastructural analysis, as far as we know, has never been performed. Therefore, we investigated the embryology of the VSE of the grass snake (Natrix natrix) using electron microscopy (SEM and TEM) and light microscopy. As was shown for adult snakes, the hypertrophied ophidian VSE may provide great resolution of changes in neuron morphology located at various epithelial levels. The results of this study suggest that different populations of stem/progenitor cells occur at the base of the ophidian VSE during embryonic development. One of them may be radial glia‐like cells, described previously in mouse. The various structure and ultrastructure of neurons located at different parts of the VSE provide evidence for neuronal maturation and aging. Based on these results, a few nonmutually exclusive hypotheses explaining the formation of the peculiar columnar organization of the VSE in snakes were proposed.

Architecture of the Pancreatic Islets and Endocrine Cell Arrangement in the Embryonic Pancreas of the Grass Snake (Natrix natrix L.). Immunocytochemical Studies and 3D Reconstructions

“…Eggs of the grass snake were incubated at 30 °C and humidity of 100% in small incubators [ 55 , 56 , 57 , 58 ]. They were half-buried in a 1:1 mixture of sand and peat and kept in plastic storage boxes for food with transparent walls.…”

Does the pancreas of gekkotans differentiate similarly? Developmental structural and 3D studies of the mourning gecko (Lepidodactylus lugubris) and the leopard gecko (Eublepharis macularius)

“…The eggs were half buried in vermiculite mixed with water at a 1:1 ratio by weight and stored in plastic food storage containers with transparent, translucent sides and tops. Such conditions have been successfully applied in previous studies (Kaczmarek et al, 2017;Kaczmarek & Rupik, 2021;Kowalska et al, 2017;Rupik, 2012Rupik, , 2013Rupik et al, 2016;Swadźba & Rupik, 2012). The embryos of E. macularius were isolated at regular intervals starting immediately after the eggs were laid.…”