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Microvascular anatomy of the esophagus in larval and adult X enopus laevis D audin: a scanning electron microscope study of microvascular corrosion casts and correlative light microscopy
Author(s) -
Lametschwandtner Alois,
Bartel Heidi,
Minnich Bernd
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
acta zoologica
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.414
H-Index - 37
eISSN - 1463-6395
pISSN - 0001-7272
DOI - 10.1111/j.1463-6395.2012.00573.x
Subject(s) - anatomy , biology , esophagus , xenopus , blood capillary , dorsal aorta , electron microscope , pathology , circulatory system , microbiology and biotechnology , medicine , biochemistry , physics , stem cell , haematopoiesis , optics , gene , endocrinology
Larval to adult microvascular anatomy of the esophagus was studied in the S outh A frican C lawed T oad, X enopus laevis ( D audin) by scanning electron microscopy of vascular corrosion casts and correlative light microscopy of paraplast embedded stained tissue sections. Analyses of vascular corrosion casts of tadpole esophaguses at premetamorphosis revealed a wide‐meshed, but mature looking capillary bed which during following prometamorphosis increased in density and gained the adult‐like pattern during late metamorphic climax by sprouting and nonsprouting angiogenesis. In adult X enopus, the esophageal mucosa possessed a dense subepithelial capillary bed fed by one or two esophageal arteries that originated from right and/or left thoracic aorta just distal to the origin of the subclavian arteries. In the adult undistended esophagus, esophageal arteries revealed an undulating course, a pattern that guarantees a continuous blood supply when the esophagus is extremely wide expanded as it is the case when adult Xenopus swallows large prey.