RESUMO
This study compares the histopathological alterations in the digestive gland cells of mussels, Mytilus galloprovincialis and clams, Ruditapes phillipinarum following exposure to copper and cadmium. The results show degenerative processes undergone in the digestive gland ranging from inflammatory responses to extreme vacuolation, particularly in Cd-exposed individuals. Unsaturated neutral lipids tend to accumulate in pathologically enlarged lysosomes of the homogeneous-type or heterogeneous-type depending of the species and of metal. Lipofucsins containing granules were mainly found in Cu-exposed mussels and Cd-exposed clams. No granules were detected in Cd-mussels. The comparison of the methods indicate that paraffin sections are also a suitable material for the localization of lipofucsins.
