Histological organization of intestinal villi in the crocodilian caiman yacare (Daudin, 1802) during dietary lipid absorption

Author(s)

Borges, Ricardo Moraes ^[1] ; Pressinotti, Leandro Nogueira ^{[1, 2]} ; Marcus, Francisco Alberto ^[3] ; Iunes, Renata Stecca ^[1] ; Aleixo, Victor Manuel ^[4] ; Lima Portela, Tania Cristina ^[1] ; Shimada Borges, Joao Carlos ^{[1, 5]} ; Bergamo, Alessandro Spindola ^{[2, 6]} ; Alves de Lima, Angela Paula ^[2] ; Machado Cunha da Silva, Jose Roberto ^{[1, 7]}

Affiliation

^[1] Univ Sao Paulo, Dept Biol Celular & Desenvolvimento, Inst Ciencias Biomed, Cidade Univ, Ave Prof Lineu Prestes 1524, Sala 409, BR-05508900 Sao Paulo, SP - Brazil

^[2] Univ Estado Mato Grosso UNEMAT, Dept Ciencias Biol, Ave Tancredo Neves 1095, BR-78200000 Caceres, MT - Brazil

^[3] Univ Sao Paulo, Dept Fis Aplicada, Inst Fis, Rua Matao, Travessa 187, BR-05508900 Sao Paulo, SP - Brazil

^[4] Inst Fed Educ Ciencia & Tecnol Mato Grosso IFMT, Campus Caceres, Ave Ramires S-N, BR-78200000 Caceres, MT - Brazil

^[5] Fac Metropolitanas Unidas UniFMU, Ctr Univ, Fac Med Vet, Rua Ministro Nelson Hungria 541, BR-01508010 Sao Paulo, SP - Brazil

^[6] Cooperat Criadores Jacare Pantanal COOCRIJAPAN, Ave Tannery S-N, Quadra 2, Lote 1, BR-78200000 Caceres, MT - Brazil

^[7] Univ Sao Paulo, Ctr Biol Marinha CeBiMar, Rodovia Manoel Hypolito do Rego, Km 131, BR-11600000 Sao Sebastiao, SP - Brazil

• Document type: Journal article
• Source: ZOOMORPHOLOGY; v. 137, n. 3, p. 419-432, SEP 2018.
• Web of Science Citations: 0

Abstract

Intestinal villi of Caiman yacare form longitudinal folds instead of the finger-like projections of most birds and mammals. Moreover, they lack Crypts of Lieberkuhn and the lamina epithelialis organization is dynamic, changing from pseudostratified to simple columnar epithelium after feeding. Because of these differences, we sought to verify whether intestinal villi of the crocodilian Caiman yacare are functionally compartmentalized along their length similarly to the finger-like villi that harbors Crypt of Lieberkuhn. For this, Caiman yacare were force-fed soybean oil, the intestinal mucosa was harvested and analyzed under light microscopy after lipid staining or immunohistochemistry for the proliferative marker PCNA. Functional compartmentalization was assessed by evaluating differences in lipid absorption along intestinal villi base-to-tip axis, by localizing the proliferative enterocytes and by verifying whether such cells were capable of absorbing lipids. Histological morphometric analyses of the extent of enterocyte hypertrophy caused by lipid inclusions and the contribution of such inclusions to histological remodeling from pseudostratified to simple columnar epithelium were also evaluated. Although lacking Crypts of Lieberkuhn, enterocytes present at villi base were PCNA positive and devoid of the great amount of lipid inclusions observed in the other intestinal villi domains, in a similar pattern to finger-like villi. Enterocytes doubled their volume because of lipid inclusions, and in spite of such enterocyte hypertrophy, lamina epithelialis continued to be pseudostratified within lateral sides, whereas villi tip were organized in a simple columnar epithelium. (AU)

• FAPESP's process: 10/04527-5 - Influence of temperature on the kinetics of wound healing of the integument in an induced lesion in jacaré-do-pantanal Caiman yacare (Daudin, 1802)
• Grantee: José Roberto Machado Cunha da Silva
• Support Opportunities: Regular Research Grants