C. Lucini et al., DISTRIBUTION OF SUBSTANCE P-LIKE IMMUNOREACTIVE NERVOUS STRUCTURES INTHE DUCK GUT DURING DEVELOPMENT, European journal of histochemistry, 37(2), 1993, pp. 173-182
The ontogeny and distribution of nerve cell bodies and fibers which ar
e substance P-like (SPL) immunoreactive have been studied in the duck
gastrointestinal tract by means of immunohistochemistry. The appearanc
e of SPL immunoreactivity was observed in cell bodies of the oesophagu
s, proventriculus, gizzard and antrum region at 6 days of incubation.
At 9 days of incubation SPL immunoreactive nervous structures were obs
erved in the whole length of the intestine. In each area of the gut, S
PL immunoreactivity was initially observed in cell bodies of the myent
eric plexus and then of the submucous plexus. Successively, immunoreac
tive fibers appeared in the same plexuses and also in the circular mus
cle, longitudinal muscle and muscularis mucosae plexus. Only around ha
tching were SPL immunoreactive nervous structures seen in the mucous p
lexus. It was observed that in adult ducks, immunoreactive nerve cell
perikarya were less numerous than in embryos and in newly-hatched duck
s. The pattern of distribution of SPL immunoreactivity in adult ducks
was rather similar to that of the chick and other vertebrate species.