Some histological studies on the oesophagus of the Nile fox (Vulpes Vulpes aegyptiaca).

This work was carried out on eight foxes. The results showed that, the lining epithelium is of stratified squamous non-keratinized type which abruptly changed into glandular simple columnar epithelium. The lamina muscularis mucosa is in the form of small scattered strands of smooth muscle fibers in the cranial and middle parts and formed a continuous layer in the caudal part near the cardia. The submucosal glands are well developed and extend along the whole length of the oesophagus till reached slightly below the cardiac region of the stomach. They were mainly of mucous acini with few serous one. The glandular mucous acini were alcianophilic. The tunica muscularis externa is of skeletal muscles along the whole length of the oesophagus except just before the cardia by 1.5 cm, the tunica muscularis are formed from mixture of smooth and skeletal muscle fibres.