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The anal canal features stratified squamous epithelium, as opposed to the simple columnar epithelium of the intestine, and hair follicles associated with sebaceous glands (anal glands). The anal canal lacks crypts of Lieberkühn and goblet cells, which are common in the intestine.
In the 4X micrograph a hair follicle is visible in the anal mucosa. The 4X, 10X, 20X, and 40X present in increasing detail the transition from rectal mucosa, containing simple columnar epithelium, short crypts of Lieberkühn, and goblet cells, to anal mucosa, consisting of stratified squamous epithelium without crypts.
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