Abstract:
Little is known about peptide-storing endocrine cells in the gut of the Nile crocodile. As in the case
of other reptiles, particularly the alligator, a limited range of peptide-storing cells was found in the gut of the crocodile. They were somatostatin, glucagon, gastrin, neurotensin and pancreatic polypeptide. The
topographical distribution of cells immunoreactive to somatostatin and gastrin in the gut of the crocodile
is comparable to the situation in the alligator. Glucagon and neurotensin immunoreactive cells have a much wider distribution in the gastrointestinal tract of the crocodile compared to the alligator.
Cholecystokinin and bombesin cells previously reported in the small intestine of the alligator were not
detected in this study. This is the first report to demonstrate pancreatic polypeptide and serotonin
immunoreactivity in the gut of a crocodilian specie.
