This study was performed to determine the histologic structure of the uropygial gland in an osprey. The gland was composed of two elongated lobes which were enclosed in a capsule of connective tissue. Each lobe of the gland had a large central cavity with one excretory duct. The secretory tubules consisted of four cell types: basal, intermediate, secretory, and degenerative. The intermediate cells in the osprey were few in number and did not form a layer, while secretory and degenerative cells consist of 2–3 strata, indicating a high level of lipogenesis. The membranes and peripheral cytoplasm of degenerative cells located in the base of the lobes revealed calcium (Ca2 ) deposition and an intense acidophilic reaction.
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1 January 2010
Histologic Structure of the Uropygial Gland of the Osprey (Pandion haliaetus)
Ismail S. Harem,
Melek Kocak-Harem,
Tolunay Turan-Kozlu,
Yesim Akaydin-Bozkurt,
Ebru Karadag-Sari,
Hikmet Altunay
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calcium
Histology
osprey
Pandion haliaetus
preen gland
structure