Published in Scientific Works. Series C. Veterinary Medicine, Vol. LXXI, Issue 1
Written by Maria-Cătălina MATEI-LAȚIU, Călin LAȚIU, Vasile RUS, Adrian Florin GAL
Gill rakers represent the inner surface of the gill arch, composed of rows of stiff strainers that serve to sort and position large food particles in the oesophagus. The histological structure reveals a central axe composed of cartilage, covered by an epithelium. However, due to their complex role combined with their anatomical disposition, the gill rakers epithelia displays a high histological complexity. Accordingly, the aim of the present study was to provide a throughout morphological and histochemical description of the gill rakers epithelia harvested from common omnivorous fish. Paired gills were harvested from Carpathian gudgeon fish Gobio carpathicus Vladykov, 1925 and fixed in 10% buffered formalin. The samples were processed with the paraffin embedding technique and subsequently stained with Goldner’s trichrome method, PAS, Alcian Blue and combined PAS-AA techniques. The obtained results show that the gill rakers are covered by a stratified epithelium composed of several layers of cells, including basal cells and mucus-producing cells, together with taste buds. The histochemical assessment revealed mucous cells able to produce complex mucins, that are both PAS and AA- positive. However, even if the gill rakers are part of the gills, the covering epithelium reveals some features similar to the described structure of the anterior pharynx, but also the gill rakers epithelia display common features with the epidermal structure.
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