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The three major salivary glands of the mouse are the submandibular gland, the parotid gland, and the sublingual 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 rodent submandibular gland is characterized by convoluted granular tubules, which are located between the intercalated and striated ducts. In the mouse, the convoluted granular tubules display sexual dimorphism. In male mice these tubules contain pyramidal cells that have secretion granules in the upper half, basal nuclei, and lightly basophilic cytoplasm. In female mice convoluted granular cells are smaller, have fewer secretion granules and centrally located nuclei. In the mouse, the submandibular gland secretes seromucoid saliva only and opens posterior to the lower incisors. The acini contain tall pyramidal cells with pale basophilic cytoplasm and central nuclei.
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 depict details of the submandibular gland.
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