Anatomy of the Female Reproductive Tract Organs of the Brown Anole (Anolis sagrei)

Authors

Bonnie K Kircher
Edward L Stanley
Richard R Behringer

Publication Date

2-1-2024

Journal

Anatomical Record

DOI

10.1002/ar.25293

PMID

37506227

PMCID

PMC11683880

PubMedCentral® Posted Date

12-30-2024

PubMedCentral® Full Text Version

Author MSS

Abstract

Female reproduction in squamate reptiles (lizards and snakes) is highly diverse and mode of reproduction, clutch size, and reproductive tract morphology all vary widely across this group of ~11,000 species. Recently, CRISPR genome editing techniques that require manipulation of the female reproductive anatomy have been developed in this group, making a more complete understanding of this anatomy essential. We describe the adult female reproductive anatomy of the model reptile the brown anole (Anolis sagrei). We show that the brown anole female reproductive tract has three distinct anterior-to-posterior regions, the infundibulum, the glandular uterus, and the nonglandular uterus. The infundibulum has a highly ciliated epithelial lip, a region where the epithelium is inverted so that cilia are present on the inside and outside of the tube. The glandular uterus has epithelial ducts that are patent with a lumen as well as acinar structures with a lumen. The nonglandular uterus has a heterogeneous morphology from anterior to posterior, with a highly folded, ciliated epithelium transitioning to a stratified squamous epithelium. This transition is accompanied by a loss of keratin-8 expression and together, these changes are similar to the morphological and gene expression changes that occur in the mammalian cervix. We recommend that description of the nonglandular uterus include the regional sub-specification of a "cervix" and "vagina" as this terminology change more accurately describes the morphology. Our data extend histological studies of reproductive organ morphology in reptiles and expand our understanding of the variation in reproductive system anatomy across squamates and vertebrates.

Keywords

Animals, Female, Lizards, Uterus, Vagina, Snakes, Reproduction, Mammals, oviduct, infundibulum, uterus, ovary

Published Open-Access

yes

Recommended Citation

Bonnie K Kircher, Edward L Stanley, and Richard R Behringer, "Anatomy of the Female Reproductive Tract Organs of the Brown Anole (Anolis sagrei)" (2024). Faculty, Staff and Student Publications. 4250.
https://digitalcommons.library.tmc.edu/uthgsbs_docs/4250