A comparative study of lymph node mast cell populations in five marsupial species

In order to determine whether different subpopulations of mast cells exist, mast cells of mandibular and axillary lymph nodes from five species (Didelphis aurita, Metachirus nudicaudatus, Philander opossum, Marmosops incanus and Gracilinanus agilis) of South American marsupials were studied. Our results showed that mast cells present in the connective tissue of the capsule and septa (CTMC) were similar to those described for eutherian mammals. However, a population of mast cells that was present in the lymphatic sinuses and bathed by the lymph, plus in direct contact with granulocytes, lymphocytes, macrophages, and reticular cells, were morphologically and histochemically different from the CTMC. In the five species studied, these cellular types, called lymphatic-sinus mast cells (LSMC), had a lower concentration of intragranular heparin and, in four of the five species, the cytoplasmic granules appeared to be larger than those in CTMC. Although LSMC have been rarely described in eutherian mammals, it was verified, in this study, that LSMC are nevertheless present in lymphatic sinuses of the five metatherian species studied. These observations suggest that the presence of LSMC may be a characteristic of the marsupials and important in the immune response and adaptive success of the Didelphidae.