Scanning electron microskopic examination of tongue papillae of tabby cats

The tongue is a mobile organ consisting of many muscles. It is an organ with high mobility due to completely torn muscles. The fact that it is covered with a layer of the tongue and is rich in nerves and has many functions such as helping to prevent distortion, swallowing, sucking and sound makes this organ important (Odar, 1986; Dursun, 1991; König et al., 2015). Apart from these parts, the tongue is a sensitive organ. The tongue is surrounded by a special mucosa. The tongue mucosa is hard in the dorsal and lateral regions, and softer in the ventral region. On the upper side, many different kinds of ridges can be seen. These bumps are called lingual papillae, papillae linguales. All of its contents are visible to the eye. The number, volume and characteristics of papillae are different for each species and race. Papillary cells are divided into two groups. These are mechanical papillae and taste papillae. Mechanical papillae are keratinized structures. In general, the number of mechanical papillae is greater than the characteristic of taste papillae. Taste papillae contain taste buds that are sensitive to tastes. Mechanically effective papillae are papillae filiformes, papillae marginales, papillae conicae and papillae lentiformes. Taste papillae are structures equipped with the ability to perceive taste. This group includes papillae fungiformes, papillae vallatae and papillae foliatae (Odar, 1986; König et al., 2015). The epithelial tissue covering the tongue contains taste buds called papillae, which can be observed in the form of particles and particles. Each of these shoots absorbs all tastes, including sweet, salty, sour, bitter and umami (delicious). In other words, taste is experienced from every part of the tongue. Only taste, which is soluble in tongue mucus, can be detected. As we age, the number of taste buds decreases. Sensory receptors in the tongue are renewed approximately every 10-30 seconds. It has taste, temperature and pain receptors (Dursun, 1991; König et al., 2015). Cat tongues have a taste function. However, cats are considered to have fewer taste