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The aim of this study was to provide a better understanding of the main difficulties hindering undergraduate biology students in learning histology. The study utilized a selfadministered questionnaire which included three closed-ended and two open-ended questions: (1) if students had difficulty in learning about each tissue type;(2) what might be the problem in learning about the tissue at hand; (3) which topics were the most difficult; (4) what were the possible reasons that made image identification of tissue types difficult; and (5) how to improve the course curriculum from a student perspective. The survey was administered to 139 undergraduate biology students enrolled in a histology course, of which 101 surveys were completed and analyzed both qualitatively and quantitatively. The topics that students experienced the most difficulties with were: nervous tissue, plant tissues, bone tissues, and glandular epithelial tissue. The main reasons students experienced difficulties with these tissue types, according to the students themselves, were the nature of the topic, grasping the terminology used, and insufficient teaching time. Students suggested the adoption of strategies such as: teaching based on practical tasks; reducing the content of the histology curriculum; adding anatomy subjects; and making histology education more interesting. Anat Sci Educ 12:541-549.

This study aimed at examining the histological structure of the pecten oculi in the adult yellow‐legged gull, Larus michahellis, and at two moments of postnatal development: during the posthatch (nestling) and juvenile periods. Particular attention was paid to differences in the diameter of vessels, the thickness of the basement membrane, and ultrastructural features of endothelial and pigmented stromal cells. Capillary endothelial cells displayed numerous microvillous‐like folds projecting from their internal and external surfaces. Intercellular spaces between capillaries were occupied by pigmented stromal cells. The ultrastructure of pecten oculi underwent noticeable changes during postnatal development. The examination of the capillaries in nestlings, juveniles, and adults revealed that the formation process of vessels and pigmented stromal cells did not complete itself in the posthaching phase. The prominent feature of endothelial cells of capillaries in nestlings was that the microvilli were longer than in juvenile and adult cells, and the capillary lumen was therefore reduced. In this sense, their pigmented stromal cells showed fewer melanosomes, lacked intercellular spaces, and cellular junctions could still be observed. These results provide evidence that the pecten oculi during the posthatching phase maintains immature morphological features consistent with a role of pigmented stromal cells in the blood‐retina barrier.

The health effects of mercury vapor exposure on the brain in volcanic areas have not been previously addressed in the literature. However, 10% of the worldwide population inhabits in the vicinity of an active volcano, which are natural sources of elemental mercury emission. To evaluate the presence of mercury compounds in the brain after chronic exposure to volcanogenic mercury vapor, a histochemical study, using autometallographic silver, was carried out to compare the brain of mice chronically exposed to an active volcanic environment (Furnas village, Azores, Portugal) with those not exposed (Rabo de Peixe village, Azores, Portugal). Results demonstrated several mercury deposits in blood vessels, white matter and some cells of the hippocampus in the brain of chronically exposed mice. Our results highlight that chronic exposure to an active volcanic environment results in brain mercury accumulation, raising an alert regarding potential human health risks. These findings support the hypothesis that mercury exposure can be a risk factor in causing neurodegenerative diseases in the inhabitants of volcanically active areas.

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The development of an effective program that combines in vitro maturation (IVM) and cryopreservation for immature oocytes would represent a novel advance for in vitro fertilization (IVF), especially as a means to preserve the fertility of women in unique situations. The aim of this study was to analyze the ultrastructural characteristics of human oocytes, obtained after controlled ovarian stimulation, to determine whether IVM is best performed before or after vitrification. To this end, we analyzed the following features in a total of 22 MII oocytes: size, zona pellucida and perivitelline space, mitochondria number, M-SER (mitochondria-smooth endoplasmic reticulum) aggregates and M-V (mitochondria-vesicle) complexes, the number of cortical granules and microvilli, and the presence of vacuolization using transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Each oocyte presented a rounded shape, with an intact oolemma, and was surrounded by a continuous zona pellucida and perivitelline space. Statistical analysis comparing oocytes vitrified before or after IVM indicated that there were no significant differences between examined characteristics.

The ocular morphology, morphological characteristics and topography of ganglion cell distribution were studied in four eyes of Globicephala melas to estimate the retinal resolution. The ganglion cell layer was composed of a single row of ganglion cells with a primarily round shape and a cell size which varied from 10 to 75 lm (mean 33.5 lm) in diameter. The typical feature was that 65 % of ganglion cells had a diameter larger than 25 lm, with a similar average size in all regions of the retina. The total number of ganglion cells (183,000-218,000; mean 203,000) was distributed in several isodensity lines with two definite areas of high cell density: one area was located in the temporal retinal area, and the other one in the nasal retina, at 65°± 5°from the optic disk. A surprising result was the presence of a third cell density peak in the dorsal region of one retina. The mean peak cell densities of three retinas were 268 and 267 cells/mm 2 in the nasal and temporal areas, respectively, and 287 cells/mm 2 in the third peak of the dorsal region. Finally, the underwater retinal resolution, calculated from posterior nodal distance and the peak cell density, was 10.9 0 (2.8 cycles/degree) in both nasal and temporal retinal areas, whereas the aerial resolution was 14.5 0 (2.1 cycles/degree). These data suggest that G. melas has a visual acuity similar to other cetaceans investigated so far.