Clinical Anatomy of the European Hamster 
In general, there are iwo kinds of salivary glands, those of serous 
type whi< h produre a watery secretion and those of mucous type, the 
secretion of which is viscous. 
The salivary system consists of the followine; 
glands: the parotid ifxirotis), the mandibular 
{l^landula mandihularis), the sublingual {i^landula 
snhlini^ualis) and the zygomatic {^laruJula zyf^o- 
matua), and various other glands which are only 
detectable histologically. 
2.14 MANDIBULAR GLAND 
I hc triarigidar iiiaiidil)ular gland (4'/. mandihu- 
laris) lies su[)crricially in the ventral cervical region 
caudal to the larynx and covering the cranial part of 
the sternohyoid muscle (Figs. 2-58, 2-59, 2-60). 
The two glands contact each other in the median 
plane. 1 he length of the gland ranges l)etwecn 14 
and 16 mm, the width between 8 and 10 mm and 
the thickness between 4 and 5 mm; each mandib- 
ular gland weighs between 350 and 400 mg (Figs. 
2-60, 2-61). Macroscopically, these glands present 
a distinct lobular structure, after removal of the 
connective tissue; the lobes are larger than those of 
the parotid gland (Tables 20, 20a). 
Ttic ni.mdihiiiar glands show a compact lul)ul()alvcol.ir sttudurc 
with lioth serous and mucous alveoli, ihc majorily of whidi ,uc of 
mucous type (I' ig. 2-62). 
The gross and histological appearance of this 
gland is similar to that described for the Syrian 
golden hamster (Schwarze and Michel, 1959-60) 
and Chinese hamster (Horber, et ai, 1974). 
2.15 SUBLINGUAL GLAND 
Cranial to tl\c mandibular gland lies the sublin- 
gual gland {i^l. suhlirifrualis) which is in close rela- 
tion to the former and can be distinguished only by 
its lighter color (Figs. 2-58, 2-59, 2-60, 2-61, 2- 
62). The sublingual gland, similar in both sexes, is 
4 to 5 mm long and .3 to 4 mm wide and weighs be- 
tween 40 and 60 mg (Tables 21, 21a). The sul)iin- 
gual gland is a mucous gland, with a compact sur- 
face like the mandil)ular but with a more delicate 
lobular structure. 
The sublingual glands are tubuloalveolar, consisting of both mucous 
and serous parts, with the mucous type predominating (Fig, 2-63), 
The secretory ducts of both glands coalesce intra- 
glandularly to form either the mandibular duct 
(ductus mandibularis) or the sublingual duct 
(ductus sublmguali.s ). Both ducts discharge at the 
sublingual caruncles which are located at the root 
of the frenulum of the tongue. The mandibular and 
sublingual glands press cranially against the parotid 
gland (Fig. 2-59). Both glands are connected by 
dense connective tissue. The mandibular and sub- 
lingual glands obscure the caudal part of the laryn- 
geal musculature, the ventral pharyngeal muscula- 
ture and the cranial portion of the thoracic 
musculature. These glands are not firmly attached 
to the musculature, especially caudally, since 
brownish fatty tissue separates the glands and the 
musculature at this position. 
2.16 PAROTID GLAND 
The parotid gland (parotis) (Fig. 2-58) lies at 
the base of the ear, embedded within a pocket of 
fatty tissue (panniculus adipo.sus), the amount of 
which varies during different seasons of the year. 
Especially in late summer and fall when the ham- 
ster stores up fat for hibernation, this gland is sur- 
rounded by a very thick deposit of fat. The parotid 
has a width of 8 to 10 mm at the base of the ear and 
a width of 3 to 4 mm in the area of the larynx (Figs. 
2-59, 2-60; Tables 19, 19a). Caudally, it borders 
the sublingual gland for a distance of several milli- 
meters. The weight of the parotid gland ranges 
from 400 to 500 mg and the color of a fresh speci- 
men is light pinkish-red (Fig. 2-62). Macroscopic- 
ally, the parotid demonstrates a lobular structure 
with a honeycombed appearance. This lobular 
structure is made quite prominent by the presence 
of well developed interstitial connective tissue. The 
secretions of the parotid are transported through 
the parotid duct (ductus parotideus) which courses 
superficially along the lateral surface of m. mnsse- 
ter before it discharges in the buccal vestibule in the 
form of a salivary papilla (papilla parotidea) located 
about 4 mm rostral to the first upper molar. 
The parotid gland is of tubuloalveolar ly|)c and its cells predomin- 
.ilcly serous (Fig, 2-64). 
In the immediate vicinity of the parotid gland, 
between the external auditory meatus (meatus 
acusticus externus) and the ascending condylar 
process of the mandible, a sebaceous gland is 
present. 
riicsc glands can be classified as tvpicallv holocrine; histologically 
ihcv rcscnil)lc the Zymbal glands of the rat (Zymbal, 1933) (Fig. 2-6.S). 
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