The significance of the autonomic innervation for the salivary secretion in the human parotid and submandibular glands

Abstract

The distribution of sympathetic and parasympathetic nerves in human salivary glands has been studied histochemically and electron—microscopically. Both glands are innervated by sympathetic (noradrenaline—containing) and parasympathetic (cholinesterase—con—taining) nerves. The sympathetic nerve terminals may also be identified by their content of vesicles of a special type. The morphological findings permit the conclusion that the adrenergic transmitter noradrenaline can probably reach all acinar cells as well as the myo—epithelial cells. A large proportion of the effector cells can evidently also be influenced directly by the parasympathetic transmitter acetylcholine.