AUTHOR=de Moura Fernanda Barthelson Carvalho , Lacerda Zara Alves , Catão-Dias José Luiz , Navas-Suárez Pedro Enrique , Werther Karin , Simões Sarah Raquel Jesus Santos , Santos Renato de Lima , Murillo Daniel Felipe Barrantes , Watanabe Tatiane Terumi Negrão , Fonseca-Alves Carlos Eduardo , Rocha Noeme Sousa 

TITLE=Background and common lesions in the female reproductive organs of giant anteaters (Myrmecophaga tridactyla)

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Veterinary Science

VOLUME=Volume 11 - 2024

YEAR=2024

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/veterinary-science/articles/10.3389/fvets.2024.1287872

DOI=10.3389/fvets.2024.1287872

ISSN=2297-1769

ABSTRACT=The giant anteater (Myrmecophaga tridactyla) is a vulnerable specie in South America and considered endangered or near extinction in Central America. Therefore, studies describing the reproductive characteristics of this species are pivotal for its conservation. Thus, this study aimed to provide a morphological description of their female reproductive tissues. We collected tissue samples from six female giant anteaters, and performed gross, morphological, and histochemical analyses. Five adult and one young subjects were enrolled in the study. In the ovary, classifications were made according to the follicle and oocyte sizes: primordial, primary, secondary, early antral, or antral. Typical follicles with a single oocyte surrounded by a simple or stratified layer of cubic epithelium, atretic follicles, corpora lutea, corpora albicans, and ovarian cysts were also observed. No ovarian lesions were observed. By contrast, endometritis, metritis, mucometra, and endometrial cysts were identified in the uterus. Uterine alterations in these subjects were frequent and could affect reproduction.