Macro and microscopic structure and morphometric indices of the mature horse lungs

Abstract

The macro- and microscopic structure of the lungs of mature horses has been studied using anatomical, histological, morphometric and statistical research methods. Morphometric estimation of lung morphological structures is given. The morphofunctional law of continuous unity and interdependence of the morphological structure and function is clearly shown in the system of the respiratory organs. Morphological researches of respiratory organs remain important and actual enough for the determination of their morphofunctional characteristic in different species. They allow diagnosing objectively the state of respiratory organs with the help of markers and criteria of morphological diagnosis. Macro- and micromorphology of lungs in sexually mature horses have characteristic anatomical features which correspond to class, age and species of animals. The presence of individual morphological features in the lung lobule structure is shown. The lung surface lobule pattern, which is formed by the stroma, is prominent in horses and has a smoother pattern compared to other domestic animals. The histological structure of the acini is formed by alveolar passages, alveolar sacs and alveoli. The alveolar tree in horses is of the shortened type, wide and vesicular in shape. Morphometric studies show that the average volume of pulmonary alveoli in clinically healthy horses is 699.8 ± 106.42 thousand µm3. The respiratory part of the lungs in horses occupies 54.8 ± 7.4% of the total area of the lung parenchyma, and the connective tissue base occupies 45.2 ± 7.4%.

Keywords

• morphology
• lung histostructure
• morphotopography
• asymmetry coefficient