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The three major salivary glands of the mouse are the parotid gland, the sublingual gland, and the submandibular gland. All are compound tubuloalveolar glands that are divided into lobules by connective tissue septa and consist of acini whose lumina are continuous with intercalated ducts. The intercalated ducts continue into the striated (secretory) ducts. Both duct types are intralobular, whereas the excretory ducts, which are formed by the union of several striated ducts, are interlobular. The excretory ducts coalesce and form a single main excretory duct that opens into the oral cavity.
The parotid gland is serous and opens opposite of the lower molars. Its acini are very small and consist of 3-4 tall pyramidal cells with strongly basophilic cytoplasm and basally located, large spherical nuclei. The intercalated ducts are short and narrow and are lined by low cuboidal cells with large central nuclei.
All micrographs depict major salivary glands of a female mouse. The 4X and 10X micrographs show how the three major salivary glands relate to each other. The 20X and 40X micrographs depict in increasing detail the acini and the intercalated and striated ducts of the parotid gland.
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