EFFECTS OF STARVATION ON MORPHOLOGY AND HISTOLOGY OF DIGESTIVE SYSTEM IN LARVAL AND JUVENILE SILURUS MERIDIONALIS CHEN

Morphological and histological changes of Silurus meridionalis larvae and juveniles, raised in laboratory condition, were observed during starvation. Livers of lareae were shrunken; Guts were shorter and thinner, and lost the winding shape.Signs of degeneration in histological structure and function of digestive organs were significant during starvation: Hepatic tissue becam imcompact due to hepatic cells'shrinkage and sinusoids' expansion. In larvae, no lipids were observed in hepatic cells and in latter period of starvation, parts of nucleoli of hepatic cells disintegrated.Soon after the onset of sforvation in juveniles, the multiangle hepatic cell became round and lost itS lipide saved during feeding days. Pancreatic tissue becam more compact with a continuous starvation. The boundary between acinar lobes was unclear;Acini were shrunken; Zymogen granules secreted by the acini decreased or disappeared.Aftor starvation, the height of epithelial cells of the digestive tract decreased and microvilli deteriorated. Stomach glands were undveloped; The lipid vesicles in epithelial cells of duodenum and small intestine disappeared, and the number of acidophilic particles in epithelial cells of rectum reduced.