Fetal Pig Dissection
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FETAL PIG DISSECTION OBJECTIVE 1. Dissect a fetal pig and identify the structures listed in Step 1. OBJECTIVE 2. Give the function of each organ or structure listed in Step 1. OBJECTIVE 3. Trace the path of food through the digestive tract of the pig. NOTE: The fetal pigs that are used for the dissection are from pregnant females that are brought to market by the producers; these animals are not killed solely for use in dissection. PROCEDURE: 1. Before you come to lab for the fetal pig dissection, review the function of each structure listed below. You should know the location of the structure, any associated enzymes, and the kind of food that is digested there (if it is part of the digestive system). tongue thyroid gland pancreas hard & soft palates diaphragm trachea teeth heart large intestine lungs mesenteries rectum nasopharynx stomach kidneys glottis pyloric sphincter gonads (ovaries, testes) epiglottis small intestine external genitals esophagus spleen urinary bladder thymus gland ureter urethra larynx liver gall bladder 2. Please note: A. Some students prefer to use gloves for the dissection. We will not provide these; please bring your own if you wish to use them. B. Follow the directions in the lab manual carefully. C. Do as little cutting away and removing of tissue as possible. D. Your fingers or a probe are usually the best tools. E. Do not remove tissue until you have identified it. F. Carefully follow the instructions in the lab for disposal of materials and clean up of dissecting equipment. Do NOT dispose of any materials in the sinks!! 3. Dissection Instruments: You will be assigned a dissection kit to be used in your study of the fetal pig. These are the instruments, and their appropriate use: 124 Scalpel: Use for your initial incisions and for the removal of skin. Scissors: Use for further cutting of tissue. Probe: Use for tracing tubes or passageways and for separating tissue. Forceps: Use for pulling apart, separating, lifting, and removing tissues. Teasing needle: Use for lifting and pushing aside tissue. 4. The following anatomical reference terms are used in describing the location of structures in relation to the midpoint of the body: dorsal, ventral; anterior, posterior; medial, lateral. (See Figure 1) 5. To hold your specimen in position, attach a length of string or a rubber band to each ankle on one side of the pig. Pull each string underneath the dissection pan and attach to the opposite ankle. dorsal medial anterior posterior lateral ventral Figure 1. I. THE ORAL CAVITY 1A. Open the jaws as wide as you can without cutting, and identify the oral cavity. The tongue is on its ventral surface, and the hard palate forms its dorsal surface. The hard palate separates the oral cavity from the nasal cavities. Examine the jaws on a demonstration skeleton of a mammal and note how they fit one another. Are both jaws movable? 1B. Make the first incisions on your fetal pig from the corner of the mouth to the bottom of the ear on both sides of the head (Figure 2). Use scissors to cut through the tissue and bone including the jawbone to the base of the tongue. Do NOT cut through the tissues at the back of the throat. 125 1C. Spread the jaws so the oral cavity is completely exposed (Figure 3). Examine the tongue carefully and answer the following questions. a. How is the tongue attached? b. What is the role of the tongue in feeding in the pig? c. Is the tongue adapted for other functions in other animals? d. Locate the papillae scattered over the tongue’s surface; these contain taste buds. Figure 2. First Incision incisor canine hard palate nasopharynx soft palate esophagus glottis tongue epiglottis papillae Figure 3. Oral Cavity 1D. The soft palate, located at the posterior border of the hard palate, contains no bone. In humans, an extension of the soft palate, the uvula, hangs down into the throat. Locate the uvula on your lab partner. 126 1E. Locate the upper and lower gums and the few teeth that may have erupted. Those that have erupted will probably be the third pair of incisors and canines. Cut into the gums of your pig to locate the molar teeth. Remove them and observe their characteristics. Determine how many embryonic teeth are present. What is the function of each of these tooth types: incisors, canine, and molars? How is each tooth type especially adapted for its function? 1F. The posterior region of the oral cavity is known as the pharynx. Both food and air pass through this area. The cavity is defined ventrally by the base of the tongue and dorsally by the rear border of the soft palate. 1G. Locate the epiglottis, a small flap of tissue located at the base of the tongue. The epiglottis protects the opening to the trachea by diverting food or liquid directly to the esophagus. The opening is the glottis. The first portion of the trachea is the larynx. What is a common name for the larynx, and what is its function? Feel the cartilaginous rings that mark the larynx and the trachea. This is to keep the tube open tube at all times. Why should this be necessary? A second opening, which leads to the esophagus, lies posterior to the glottis. The esophagus is the muscular tube that leads from the mouth to the stomach. Note that it has no cartilage rings as does the larynx. Suggest why this is so. What process moves the food through the esophagus? 1H. Locate the opening to the nasal passageway on the roof of the mouth to the rear of the soft palate. This is called the nasopharyngeal opening. With your mouth closed, inhale through your nose. You will feel the air entering the back of your mouth. How does that compare to the area you are observing in the fetal pig? II. THE NECK REGION For the second incision, turn your pig ventral side up and remove a large segment of skin that runs posteriorly from the middle of the lower jaw to the chest and laterally to the sides of the throat (Figure 4). Use care when cutting the skin. Figure 4. Neck Region - Second Incision 127 2A. The first tissues that will be visible when the skin is removed will be thin fibers that run anterior-posterior (Figure 5). These fibers are muscles. They must be removed to expose the thymus glands which run down both sides of the throat in the neck region and into the chest cavity. The glandular tissue is very different in appearance from the muscle fibers, and it appears cheesy in consistency. The thymus glands are not part of the digestive system. They function in the young mammal to process lymphocytes, a kind of white blood cell that serve as one of the animal's defenses against infectious disease. muscles thymus gland thyroid Figure 5. Neck Region - Exposed Tissue 2B. You will have to go a bit deeper to see a second smaller gland, the thyroid gland, located ventral to the trachea. It is usually dark reddish-brown in color which makes it rather easy to identify. What is the function of the thyroid gland? 2C. Using a probe, separate the superficial muscles and glands from one another without cutting them. Probe down into the deeper layers of the neck. Medially, beneath several strips of muscle, you will find the hard-walled larynx and trachea, parts of the respiratory passageways (Figure 6). Dorsal to the trachea, probe for the esophagus. One way to be certain that you have located the esophagus is to open the mouth, probe well down into the esophagus, and then feel in the neck for the tube containing the hard probe. Be sure to understand the relationships of the food and air passages in the head and neck. 128 glottis larynx trachea esophagus bronchus lung diaphragm Figure 6. Thoracic Cavity III. THE THORACIC CAVITY Continue the incision that you made in the neck region posteriorly until you reach the diaphragm. Then cut flaps laterally to expose the heart and lungs. You have now exposed the thoracic cavity. 3A. Examine the thoracic cavity. The heart is located in the center of this cavity. It is also wrapped in thin tissue, the pericardium. The dark flap-like structures on top of the heart are the right and left auricles which are extensions of the atria. The greatest portion of the heart consists of the ventricles. 3B. Also in the thoracic cavity, on either side of the heart, are the lungs (Figure 6). These are contained in the pleural cavity. This cavity is lined by a thin outer membrane that lies against the rib cage and there is another such membrane that encases the lungs. Together, these membranes form a sac filled with fluid that helps reduce friction as the lungs expand and contract. Examine each lung. Also follow the trachea as it branches into right and left bronchi which lead to the right and left lung. Both the trachea and the bronchi are prevented from collapsing by the presence of cartilaginous rings. The heart and the lungs are protected by the rib cage. Note how the diaphragm forms the lower limit to the thoracic cavity. 129 IV. THE ABDOMINAL REGION The abdominal region is that area, posterior to the ribs, in which the ventral body wall has no body support. The body wall in this region encloses a large peritoneal cavity. Most of the digestive, excretory, and reproductive organs are found in the peritoneal cavity.