Morphological characteristics of the kidneys of mature dogs (Canis Lupus Familiaris L., 1758)
Authors: Khomenko Z. V. , Sokulskyi I. M. , Zaika S. S. 
Published: March 2024

Each biological species of animals is unique in its structure, which is due to the uniqueness of ecological habitats and the peculiarities of adaptation of homeostasis mechanisms to the influence of environmental factors. Subtle differences in the structural and functional components of organs found in different species of animals create a clear architecture for understanding the depth of biological processes. Research of species, breed and age macro- and microanatomical structures and their morphometric indicators of organs and systems should be considered as urgent tasks of modern morphology. The new data on the morphological indicators of organs discovered at the macro- and micro-levels make a certain contribution to the age-related, breed-related, comparative, experimental and clinical morphology of mammals. Urinary organs in the body of mammals play one of the leading roles in maintaining the physiological and biochemical status of the organism and homeostasis as a whole, which largely depends directly on the morphological and functional state of these organs. Increasingly, there is a need for comprehensive scientific studies of various departments of the urinary organs. The scientific article uses material that is a fragment of the planned research work of the department of normal and pathological morphology, hygiene and expertise “Development, morphology and histochemistry of animal organs in normal and pathological conditions”, state registration number 0120U100796. The article contains the results of the morphometric characteristics of the kidneys of sexually mature dogs – Canis lupus familiaris L., 1758. During the implementation of this work, complex research methods were applied: anatomical, histological, morphometric and statistical. For histological examination, a fragment of kidneys was selected, they were fixed in 10 % neutral formalin solution, Carnois and Buena fluid. In the future, dehydration was carried out in alcohols of increasing concentration and the procedure for sealing the organ was carried out according to generally accepted methods. Using a sled microtome, histological sections with a thickness of 7–10 μm were obtained. Processing of the results of histological sections was examined under a “Micros” light microscope with a digital camera at a magnification of × 100–400. The morphological study of the structural organs of the urinary system was studied on histological sections by the method of light microscopy in accordance with the requirements of the international principles of the “European Convention for the Protection of Vertebrate Animals Used in Experiments and Other Scientific Purposes” (Strasbourg, 1986), by the decision of the First National Congress on Bioethics (M. Kyiv, 2001), Law of Ukraine No. 692 “On the Protection of Animals from Cruel Treatment” (3447-IV) dated February 21, 2006. According to the histological structure, the kidneys of dogs are represented by renal corpuscles and renal tubules, which are made of epithelial cells. Organometric studies indicate that the absolute mass of kidneys in sexually mature dogs is 119.8 ± 6.48 g, relative – 0.74 ± 0.04 %. Morphometric studies of the kidney parenchyma in dogs have established that the average area of renal corpuscles is 4.89 ± 0.24 thousand μm², the area of the vascular glomerulus is 3.79 ± 0.18 thousand μm², the area of the Shumlyansky-Bowman capsule lumen is 1.12 ± 0.27 thousand μm². The average volume of renal bodies of the cortical substance is 1265.69 ± 239.34 thousand μm³. The number of renal corpuscles per conventional unit of area (5 mm²) is 20.8 ± 0.6 units. The aim of the work was to investigate the peculiarities of the morphogistological structure of the kidneys of sexually mature dogs. The research results will expand information about the morphological structure, and will serve for the development of issues of physiology, pathology and treatment of diseases of the urinary organs.