Morphological study on the Lingual Papillae in the Ferret

Objectives: We investigated the fine structure of the lingual papillae in the ferret(Mustela putorius furo). Methods: The six ferrets were observed to determine the shape of the epithelium, and the state of the connective tissue with a scanning electron microscope. Results: No foliate papillae were observed in these animals. Filiform papillae existed close to the dorsum of the tongue body, arranged in a line up from the anterolateral to the posteromedial direction. On the posterior part of the tongue body, there were epithelium filiform papilla shaped like a single big cone, but the connective tissue papillae were arranged in a circle with small papillae. In the middle and the apical parts of the tongue, the shape of the epithelium papillae and the connective tissue papillae became smaller as they approached the apex, and they were arranged in a circle. A scattering of fungiform papillae existed on the dorsum of the tongue body between the filiform papillae. The epithelium and the connective tissues of the fungiform papillae were shaped like square pillars, and there were 3-6 foveae observed at the surface of the connective tissue that seemed to match the shape of the taste bud. About ten vallate papillae existed on the posterior part of the tongue body, arranged in 2-3 rows like the letter "V". The epithelium and the connective tissues of these papillae were shaped like hemisphere, and there were a lot of small projections and foveae which seemed to match the shape of the taste bud. Conclusions: In the shape of the filiform papillae, the epithelium papillae showed the difference from the anterior and the posterior parts, however, the connective tissue showed no difference. In the shape of the fungiform and the vallate papillae, there were no difference between the epithelium and the connective tissues.