Gaafar H, Tantawy A, Hamza M, Shaaban M
Department of Otolaryngology, Alexandria Faculty of Medicine, Egypt.
ORL J Otorhinolaryngol Relat Spec. 1998 Mar-Apr;60(2):88-91. doi: 10.1159/000027571.
In recent studies, the vomeronasal organ (VNO), although vestigial and with unknown function in humans, was reported to be present in almost every person examined. In rabbits, it is a well-developed organ, one lying on each side of the nasal septum. Histologically it was found to contain neuroepithelium which is considered an accessory olfactory system taking charge of an olfactory discrimination different from that of olfactory epithelium. Experimental removal of the VNO in male animals reduces reproductive performance and aggression. In this study, the effects of prolonged exposure to ammonia vapor on the histological pattern and enzymatic activity of the olfactory epithelium and the VNO neuroepithelium of 30 adult male rabbits were investigated and compared with a control group. In the exposed animals, the supporting cells in both types of epithelia showed hyperplasia which was more marked in the olfactory epithelium. Manifestations of cytotoxicity were found more in the bipolar cells of the olfactory epithelium than in the VNO neuroepithelium. The enzymatic activity in the exposed group supported the histological results. The presence of the VNO neuroepithelium of the rabbit in a narrow duct with a minute nasal orifice could have some protective effects on the cells.
在最近的研究中，犁鼻器（VNO）尽管在人类中已退化且功能不明，但据报道在几乎每一个接受检查的人身上都存在。在兔子身上，它是一个发育良好的器官，位于鼻中隔的两侧。组织学研究发现，它含有神经上皮，被认为是一个辅助嗅觉系统，负责与嗅觉上皮不同的嗅觉辨别。实验性切除雄性动物的犁鼻器会降低其繁殖性能和攻击性。在本研究中，研究了30只成年雄性兔子长期暴露于氨蒸气对嗅觉上皮和犁鼻器神经上皮的组织学模式及酶活性的影响，并与对照组进行了比较。在暴露组动物中，两种上皮中的支持细胞均出现增生，在嗅觉上皮中更为明显。嗅觉上皮双极细胞中的细胞毒性表现比犁鼻器神经上皮中更多。暴露组的酶活性支持了组织学结果。兔子的犁鼻器神经上皮存在于一个带有微小鼻口的狭窄管道中，这可能对细胞有一定的保护作用。
