Anatomical and histological study on the tongue of two different species Ptychadena mascareniensis and Hemidactylus turcicus from the Egyptian environment

Background The tongue plays definite and important role in simplifying food intake and also, exhibits significant morphological distinctions to acclimatize the environment. This study aimed to investigate the variations in gross and microscopic anatomy of the tongue in two tetrapod classes Ptychadena mascareniensis from class: Amphibia and Hemidactylus turcicus from class: Reptilia to correlate the structure and functions of the tongue in relations to the habitat and feeding mechanisms. Results All the modifications perceived in the tongues of the premeditated animals explained the relationship between adaptation of each animal to its feeding habit and habitat. Amphibians which live in and nearby freshwater showed no keratinization in their lingual epithelium. However, reptiles, which live in terrestrial habitats, have shown keratinization and ideal forms of lingual papillae which considered the most remarkable feature of the histological structures of the reptilian tongues and reflect their adaptations to the dry habitat in which they live. Conclusion There were some variations reported in histological structure, gross anatomy and ultrastructure morphology of the tongue from the two tetrapod classes, the Amphibia ( Ptychadena mascareniensis ) and Reptilia ( Hemidactylus turcicus ). The present study is the first one in Egypt that deals with the tongue structures and functions in one of the amphibians Ptychadena mascareniensis. Concerning the lizard Hemidactylus turcicus.