Ultrastructure of the palatine tonsils of the donkey (Equus asinus): New insights by light, scanning, and transmission electron microscopy

The study aimed to explore the ultrastructure of the donkeys' palatine tonsils. Palatine tonsils of five male donkeys (5 years old) were investigated macroscopically and microscopically. The tonsils appeared as a dome shape with slight elevation and a circular opening on the surface of the oropharynx. The central tonsillar crypt appeared on the medial side of the palate-pharyngeal folds and the floor of the oropharynx. The external surface of the palatine tonsil had different sizes of mucosal folds, some grooves directed to drainage at the tonsillar opening, and the tonsil crypt opening was a crescentic or irregular oval shape. The outer surface was covered by stratified squamous epithelium and modified to be reticular epithelium invaded by lymphocytes in the crypt called lympho-epithelium. The tonsil crypt had aggregated lymphoid nodules, and the cryptal epithelium has surrounded by diffused lymphocytes and hassles corpuscles-like structures. The lymphocytes infiltrated into different layers of the cryptal epithelium and transformed into reticular or lympho-epithelium. The organized lymphoid nodules were primary and secondary, and the secondary ones had a light germinal center. The interfollicular area had many high endothelial venules and blood capillaries. The endothelial venules were lined by simple cuboidal epithelium and had lymphocytes. The blood capillaries had red blood cells and neutrophils. The tonsil was surrounded incompletely by a connective tissue capsule with mucous glands under that capsule. In conclusion, the epithelial lymphocyte infiltration, crypt epithelium, lymphoid nodules, and intra-follicular area of the donkey's palatine tonsils indicate the humoral and cell-mediated immunological process.