Estudio Anátomo-Histológico del Útero de Dasypus hybridus (Mammalia, Dasypodidae)

S.M. CODÓN; E.B. CASANAVE

Foz do Iguaçu, Brasil.

Congreso; 2004 I Reunión de Integración de Morfología Panamericana, XV Congreso Panamericano de Anatomía (APA), VI Congreso del Cono Sur; 2004

Asociaciones Brasileña, Chilena y Argentina de Anatomía.

ANATOMO-HISTOLOGICAL STUDY OF THE UTERUS OF Dasypus hybridus (MAMMALIA, DASYPODIDAE). 1Stella Maris CODÓN  and 2Emma Beatriz CASANAVE. 1Cátedra de Histología Animal and 2Cátedra de Fisiología Animal, Dpto. de Biología, Bioquímica y Farmacia, Universidad Nacional del Sur. San Juan 670. (B8000FWB). Bahía Blanca. 2Member of the Researcher Career of CONICET. E-mail: smcodon@criba.edu.ar The anatomo-histological features of the uterus of Dasypus hybridus are described. The material was processed by standard methods of anatomy and histology. The uterus is simple, pear shaped and typically placed. The more dilated zone is placed cranially and the narrower portion, cervical, extends caudally. Fundus, body or corpus and cervix are distinguished. The endometrium is covered by pseudoestratified columnar ciliated epithelium and lamina propria of loose connective tissue, which is found among the endometrial glands in the regions of fundus and body. These glands are simple tubular, straight and elongated, with tall columnar ciliated glandular cells, with oval and basal nucleus and accumulation of mucopolysaccharide (PAS+) on their surfaces. Among the endometrial glands and bellow them there is a layer of anastomotic sinusoids that separate the endometrium from the myometrium. The endometrium is narrower and looser in the fundus, with shorter glands, and more extensive and bigger sinusoids. In the cervix, there is a thickening of the connective tissue in the lamina propria, more fibrous near the myometrium, and there is not a layer of sinusoids. The myometrium in the body is thick, made up of smooth muscle fibers located in not well-defined layers. The innermost very thick layer is composed by small bundles of smooth muscle fibers oriented in all directions, with connective tissue interposed. Among the muscular bundles, there are internally a zone with small sinusoids and externally another one with large sinusoids and larger blood vessels, thicker than the previous layer. In the middle thick layer, there are larger bundles of smooth muscle, predominantly of longitudinal arrangement, abundant connective tissue and the area vasculosa. The outer layer has two zones, the inner circular, with large blood vessels and a thin outer one of longitudinal arrangement. The myometrium is thinner in the fundus than in the body. The inner layer is thinner and there are sinusoids of great diameter. The characteristics of the uterus of D. hybridus are compared with those of other armadillos. KEY WORDS: histology, uterus, armadillo, Mammalia, Xenarthra, Dasypodidae. Supported by SGCYT (UNS), Project 24/B086 and ANPCYT, PICTR BID 074/02.