article · International Journal of Morphology
This study examines the anatomical and microscopic structure of the gills in the puffer fish species Lagocephalus sceleratus. Gross examinations revealed gill openings shaped as simple slits situated in front of the pectoral fins, lacking distinct opercular covers. The respiratory system comprises three pairs of gill arches, featuring gill rakers on the inner concave edges and gill filaments along the outer convex margins. Microscopic analyses showed longitudinal ridges with taste buds and spines surrounding the rakers, alongside hyaline cartilage forming the arch framework. Each filament contains a central cartilaginous core, abundant mucous cells, and chloride cells positioned near the secondary lamellae. These lamellae contain blood capillaries supported by pillar cells, alongside pavement and mucous cells. Together, these structural characteristics support specialised adaptations for feeding, salt balance, and respiration within the species' aquatic environment.
Understanding the detailed gill anatomy of Lagocephalus sceleratus clarifies how this puffer fish species breathes, regulates internal salt concentrations, and processes food. These insights provide fundamental biological data on marine fish morphology, aiding wider ecological and physiological research into how specific marine organisms function and survive within their aquatic environments.
The abstract does not indicate an application pathway.
AI-generated from the published abstract. Always read the original work before citing.
In the present study, we focused on the morphology of L. sceleratus gills using gross anatomy, scanning electron microscopy as well as light microscopy. Results of this study revealed that the gill openings appeared as simple slits anterior to the pectoral fin without distinct opercular cover. The gill system consisted of three pairs of gill arches carrying two rows of gill rakers on its concave border and gill filaments on its convex border. SEM showed that all surfaces of the gill arch were characterized by the presence of the longitudinal ridges with many taste buds in addition to many spines around the rakers. Histologically, the gill arch was composed of curved bar of hyaline cartilage with slightly elevated area corresponding to the sites of gill rakers. Each filament was formed of a thin central cartilaginous core surrounded by peripheral cartilaginous ma trix and covered by primary epithelial layer with abundant mucous cells. The chloride cells appeared mainly near to the base of secondary lamellae. Each gill filament gave rise to a very large number of secondary lamellae on both sides. The epithelial lining of the secondary lamellae comprised epithelial pavement cells, few mucous cells and pillar cells. The latter interposed the enriched blood capillaries. These findings suggest that L. sceleratus gills have characteristic morphological features that are related to adaptive functions for feeding habits, osmoregulation and respiratory mechanism with in their living environment.
This page summarises published work. The authoritative version sits with the publisher.
DOI: 10.4067/s0717-95022016000300001
Is something wrong with this record? Report it or request removal.
Discussion
Have you built on this work, tried to replicate it, or seen it applied in practice? Share what you know. Verified researchers and MARATTO™ domain experts can open a discussion, and any member can reply. Contributions are reviewed before they appear.
No discussion yet. Open the first thread.
New to MARATTO™? Create a free account.
