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The three major salivary glands of the mouse are the sublingual gland, the parotid gland, and the submandibular gland. All are compound tubuloalveolar glands that are divided into lobules by connective tissue septa and consist of acini whose lumina are continuous with intercalated ducts. The intercalated ducts continue into the striated (secretory) ducts. Both duct types are intralobular, whereas the excretory ducts, which are formed by the union of several striated ducts, are interlobular. The excretory ducts coalesce and form a single main excretory duct that opens into the oral cavity.
The sublingual gland is a small and compact mucous gland opening posterior to the lower incisors. The acini contain tall pyramidal cells with a pale basophilic cytoplasm and basally located nuclei. The intercalated ducts are short and narrow and are lined by low cuboidal epithelium. The main excretory duct is lined by stratified columnar epithelium.
All micrographs depict major salivary glands of a female mouse. The 4X and 10X micrographs show how the three major salivary glands relate to each other. The 20X and 40X micrographs illustrate in increasing detail the acini and the intercalated and excretory ducts of the sublingual gland.
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