ORIGEM E RAMIFICAÇÕES DAS ARTÉRIAS MESENTÉRICAS CRANIAL E CAUDAL EM TARTARUGA DA AMAZÔNIA Podocnemis expansa Schweigger, 1812, (Testudinata-pelomedusidae)

Foram estudadas cinco Podocnemis expansa, femeas, cujo peso variava de 550 a 850 g. Os animais tiveram seu sistema arterial injetado com solucao corada de latex sintetico, fixados e armazenados em solucao aquosa de formaldeido a 10%. Apos abertura da cavidade celomatica, as arterias mesentericas cranial e caudal foram dissecadas. Encontrou-se a arteria mesenterica cranial como um ramo do tronco celiaco-mesenterico e originando as arterias pancreaticoduodenal caudal, ileocolica e jejunais, que irrigam o duodeno, pâncreas, colon, ileo e jejuno, respectivamente. A arteria mesenterica caudal origina-se da aorta (60%) ou da arteria iliaca comum (40%), distribuindo-se para o colon e reto. Origin and ramifications of the cranial and caudal mesenteric arteries in Amazonian turtle - Podocnemis expansa Schweigger, 1812, Testudinata-Pelomedusidae Abstract An anatomic study has been carried out on the mesenteric arteries of five Podocnemis expansa females weighing from 550 to 680 g. The animals had their artery system injected with a latex solution colored with a specific pigment and were then fixed in a 10% formol solution. After the coelomatic cavity being opened the cranial and caudal mesenteric arteries were dissected. It has been found that the cranial mesenteric artery is a branch of the coeliac mesenteric trunk while the cranial mesenteric artery gives off the pancreatic-duodenal , ileocolic and jejunal arteries that irrigate the duodenum, pancreas, colon, ileum and jejunum respectively. The aorta gives origen of as much as 60% of the caudal mesenteric artery, the remaining 40 % being originated from the common ileac artery, their branches reaching the colon and the rectum.