Histology and histochemistry of the stomach of an Asian schilbeid, Clupisoma garua (Hamilton)

The cellular peculiarities and histochemical nature of the stomach in the freshwater catfish Clupisoma garua (Hamilton) were explored with light microscopic analysis. The pouch shaped muscular stomach was distinguished into the anterior cardiac and posterior pyloric regions. Histologically, the wall of stomach consisted of four distinct layers of the mucosa, submucosa, muscularis, and very thin serosa. The mucosa contained two kinds of epithelia: the superficial epithelium lined with columnar epithelial cells and the glandular epithelium crowded with numerous gastric glands that open through gastric pits. The vascularized submucosa was made up of loose connective tissues that extended into the mucosa forming lamina propria. The well-developed muscular layer was composed of an inner thick layer of circular muscle and an outer layer of longitudinal muscle bands. The detection and localization of mucopolysaccharides, glycogen, protein, and tryptophan in the various cells bounded in the stomach were described with the feeding behavior of the fish concerned.