The von Ebner’s and Weber’s glands are lingual salivary glands located at the posterior part of the mammalian tongue. In the present study, histochemical features of glycoconjugates secreted by both glands were examined in the large and lesser bamboo rats, fossorial herbivorous rodents distributed in Indochina. The results revealed that the posterior lingual glands of these two bamboo rat species consisted of serous von Ebner’s glands and mucous Weber’s glands. The histochemistry using periodic acid-Schiff (PAS), alcian blue (AB) pH 1.0 and 2.5, AB pH 2.5/PAS, aldehyde fuchsin (AF) pH 1.0 and AF pH 1.0/AB pH 2.5 staining demonstrated that the secretion of von Ebner’s glands contained neutral glycoconjugates without acidic forms, whereas that of Weber’s glands included mainly acidic glycoconjugates (probably mucins), which were predominantly sulfated forms. Small amounts of neutral glycoconjugates were detected in the Weber’s glands of the large bamboo rat but were lacking in the lesser bamboo rat. The glycoconjugate content in saliva from these lingual glands may have a taste-related function associated with the taste buds of the vallate papillae. Beyond protection against irritating factors, the presumed sulfated mucins secreted by Weber’s glands may improve the antimicrobial properties of the mucus. Subtle differences in histochemical staining between the two bamboo rats are possibly related to their different diet specificity.

KEY WORDS: Histochemistry; Histology; Minor salivary glands; Mucins; Rodents.

WANNAPRASERT, T. Histochemical study of the posterior lingual glands of the large bamboo rat (Rhizomys sumatrensis) and the lesser bamboo rat (Cannomys badius) Int. J. Morphol., 43(3):993-1000, 2025.