Possible Role of the Submandibular Gland in the Development of Obesity in Mice

The possible role of submandiblular glands(SMG) in the development of obesity was studiedintwo types of genetically obese mice,ob/ob and yellow A:Obesity is caused by hyperplasia followed by hypertrophy in ob/ob mice and mainly by hypertrophy in A mice.The histological features of SMGs exhibited clear sexual dimorphism in both mice similar to lean controls.The SMGs of ob/ob mice was smaller in size and had smaller granular convoluted tubular portions than lena controls,while the SMGs of A mice did not differ from lean controls.Sialoadenectomy before and after development of obesity generally reduced the gain of body weights in both sexes of A mice but not in ob/ob mice.The content of epidermal growth factor(EGF) in the SMGs was higher in A mice and lower in ob/ob mice than their controls.The possible role of EGF in the SMGs in the development of obesity is discussed.