ABSTRACT
The aim of our research is to make a microanatomical evaluation of the ratios of the structural elements of the oesophagus muscular tunic and suggest a new perspective in the general knowledge about this tubular organ. The visualisation of the structural elements was done using classical microanatomical methods Hematoxylin-Eosin for general orientation, Van Gieson for picrofuxinophile collagen fibers and Gömöri for reticuline fibers. The neurofilaments were identified using silver impregnation on Cajal block. The examination of the sections was made with the Nikon Eclipse 600 photomicroscope. The images were taken and processed using a computer with LuciaNet licensed Microsoft. The co-existence in the architecture of the oesophagus of two microcinematic systems structurally divergent, but functionally convergent represents microanatomical arguments for the nomination of a new type of muscles--the oesophageal muscle--anatomo-functionally different from the skeletal striate muscle, from the smooth visceral muscle, from the cardiac muscle or from the embryonic type muscle of the excitoconductor system. The extra cellular matrix of the muscular tunic of the oesophagus contributes to the organization of the endo- and peri-misium, as well as to the three structures involved in the biomechanics of the oesophageal muscle: the connective-vascular septa, the microtendons that have in their structure receptors of the peristaltic reflex and, finally, the lamina propria myenterica strewed with numerous neuronal structures. The co-existence of the stereo-distribution of the monostructured fascicles (skeletal muscular fibers or smooth muscular cells) with bistructured fascicles (skeletal-smooth) gives the oesophagus a heterogeneous architecture. Lamina propria myenterica, which realizes the border between the circular and longitudinal strata, contains two neuronal structures of its own, but anatomically inserted the neural myenteric plexus which is equivalent to the Auerbach plexus and the neuroganglion of the myenteric plexus, equivalent to the visceral neuroganglion Cajal-Retzius.
