Full Name: Date:

Matric Number: Class:

UNIVERSITY OF CYBERJAYA
FOUNDATION IN ALLIED SCIENCES

EXPERIMENT 3 (Part 1) : VERTEBRATE ANATOMY & DIGESTIVE SYSTEM

OVERVIEW 1:

1. External features of the rat.

Studying anatomy involves much more than just memorizing and recognizing parts of an
organism. It requires understanding the relationship of the function of an anatomical feature
to the structure and location of that feature. As you study rat anatomy, remember that your
objective is not just to memorize parts of the rat but to understand that the overall design of
the rat’s anatomy and how this structure relates to function.

We have chosen a rat (Rattus norvegicus) for dissection because it is a small and familiar
vertebrate. In addition, white (albino) rats are bred for laboratory experimentation and are
used often as physiological models of vertebrate systems. Before you begin dissection,
familiarize yourself with the following terms. They are used to describe the location of
structures and their relationship to other structures (Figure 1).

Dorsal – toward the upper surface (back)

Ventral – toward the lower surface (belly)
Anterior – toward the head
Posterior – toward the tail
Cranial – toward the head
Caudal – toward the tail

Frontal plane – divides the body into dorsal and ventral halves; two-dimensional
plane parallel to the anterior-posterior axis and perpendicular to the dorsal-ventral
axis
Transverse plane – a cross-section; two-dimensional plane perpendicular to the
anterior-posterior axis of the body
Sagittal plane – divides the body into left and right halves; two-dimensional plane
parallel to the anterior-posterior axis and parallel to the dorsal-ventral axis.

Introduction to Human Anatomy and Physiology Lab FG 1011

1
Full Name: Date:
Matric Number: Class:

Figure 1: Surfaces and planes of section of a rat.

Question 1
What features of rats make them a good experimental model to learn about factors that
affect humans?

OBJECTIVES:

By the end of this experiment, you should be able to:

1. define the terms used to describe the general planes, surfaces, and anatomy of a
vertebrate
2. identify the external mammalian features of the male and female rat

MATERIALS

1. Rat
2. Dissection set
3. Dissection tray
4. Alcohol/Dettol spray
5. Glove
6. Pins

Method Activity 1: External features of rat

1. Rinse your rat with cold water to remove access preservative.

2. Then lay it in a small dissecting pan and observe its general characteristics.

Introduction to Human Anatomy and Physiology Lab FG 1011

2
Full Name: Date:
Matric Number: Class:
• The rat’s body is divided into six anatomical regions: the cranial region or head, the
cervical region or neck, the pectoral region or the area where forelegs attach, the
thorax or chest region, the abdomen or belly, and the pelvic region or area where
hind legs attach. The terms right or left refer to the organism’s right or left side
regardless of how the organism is positioned in the dissecting pan.

3. Locate and examine the external structures noted in bold print in the following
descriptions.

• A hairy coat called the pelage covers most of the rat’s body (Figure 3). The tactilely
(relating to touch) sensitive “whiskers” on the face are called vibrissae. The nares
(nostrils) are at the anterior end of the head. The subterminal mouth has a cleft in
the upper lip which exposes large front teeth called incisors. The eyes bulge from
the head and enable the rat to see in almost all directions at once. Eyes equipped
with large pupils are one of many adaptations to nocturnal life. The nictitating
membrane is located at the inside corner of the eye. This translucent membrane
may be drawn across the eyeball for protection. Locate the eyelids – they are similar
to those found in humans. Ears are located posteriorly on the head and composed
of a pinna (external ear) and an auditory meatus (ear canal).

Figure 3: External anatomy of female and male rats.

Introduction to Human Anatomy and Physiology Lab FG 1011

3
Full Name: Date:
Matric Number: Class:
• On the ventral surface of the rat and just lateral to the midline are six pairs of nipples
or teats. The tail is located posteriorly (caudally) and is covered with hair and scales.
Ventral to the base of the tail is the anus. Just caudal to the last pair of teats of a
female is a small protuberance, the clitoris, from which the urinary aperture opens.
Just caudal to the clitoris is the vaginal orifice in a small depression called the vulva.

• In males, a pair of large scrotal sacs lies on each side of the anus and contain the
testes, which produce sperm cells. The testes may be withdrawn into the abdomen
during non-reproductive periods. Just anterior to the scrotal sacs is the prepuce,
which is a bulge of skin surrounding the penis. The penis can be extended from the
prepuce through the preputial orifice. The end of the penis has a urogenital
orifice where both urine and sperm cells exit the body. Be sure to examine rats of
both sexes.

• The rat is quadruped (four legs) with four digits and a vestigial thumb on each foot.
Both the sole and heel of a rat’s foot contact the ground is indicated by the lack of
hair from the toes to the heel. This stance is plantigrade. Some other animals are
digitigrades and walk on their toes.

Introduction to Human Anatomy and Physiology Lab FG 1011

4
Full Name: Date:
Matric Number: Class:
OVERVIEW 2:

1. Internal organs of the rat.

2. Dissection of the digestive system of the rat

Digestion, the breaking down of the food into soluble substances takes place by physical
and chemical means. The former is achieved by e.g. teeth, gut muscles, and the action of
solutions such as bile. Chemical breakdown is achieved by digestive enzymes.

The human gut is differentiated by into a series of specialized regions, each showing, in both
its coarse and microscopic anatomy, a close relationship between structure and function. In
humans, physical digestion is achieved by the teeth, stomach contractions, and bile.
Movement of food along the gut is achieved by peristalsis. Chemical digestion is achieved by
enzymes contained in saliva, gastric juice, pancreatic juice and intestinal juice, secreted by the
salivary glands, stomach wall (gastric glands), pancreas and wall of the small intestine
respectively. To aid absorption, the surface area of the absorptive epithelium is increased by
villi, and the surface area of the individual epithelial cells is increased by microvilli.

Dissection of internal organs (Figure 2) requires patient concentration. Use a blunt probe
rather than a scalpel or a needle to separate muscles and to move internal organs. Keep your
specimen moist with dilute preservative so tissue won’t be damaged as you move muscles
and organs to reveal hidden structures.

Figure 2: Internal organs of the rat. Move the intestines to the right or left to see the
dispersed pancreas tissue. Note that muscles cover the esophagus, thyroid, and larynx.

Introduction to Human Anatomy and Physiology Lab FG 1011

5
Full Name: Date:
Matric Number: Class:
LAB REPORT

Write a lab report using following guidelines and submit to the instructor within one week
after the lab session finish.

1. Objectives
2. Introduction
3. Hypothesis
4. Materials:
5. Methods
6. Result: Draw and label the contents of abdominal cavity showing digestive organs of the
rat
7. Discussion: Describe functions for each digestive organ of the rat.
8. Precautionary steps
9. Conclusion
10. References

OBJECTIVES:

By the end of this experiment, you should be able to:

1. identify the organs of the digestive system of the rat

2. draw a labeled diagram of the digestive system

Method Activity 2: Dissection of the rat’s digestive system

1. Pin the rat to a dissecting board, ventral surface upwards and head pointing away from
you. Make a mid-ventral incision through the skin and cut forward as far as the lower
jaw, and backwards to the anus. Cut either side of the urino-genital openings. Free the
skin from the underlying body wall.

2. Pin back the skin and cut through the body wall as shown in Figure 4.

3. Wet your fingers so they slide easily between the organs.

• Look between the stomach and the liver and find the lower end of the
oesophagus where it joins the stomach. Using your fingers to move the organs
this way and that, and without cutting the mesentery by which the gut is
suspended in the abdominal cavity, follow the alimentary canal in the abdomen
from oesophagus to rectum.

• Identify cardiac and pyloric regions of stomach (note spleen clinging to

stomach), pyloric sphincter, duodenum, ileum, caecum with short appendix,
colon and rectum. The duodenum and ileum together make up the small
intestine; the colon and rectum make up the large intestine.

• Push the liver upwards, the stomach to your right and the ileum to your left.
Deflect the duodenum downwards towards you as shown in Figure 5. This will

Introduction to Human Anatomy and Physiology Lab FG 1011

6
Full Name: Date:
Matric Number: Class:
enable you to see the pancreas within the loop of the duodenum, and the bile
duct (white tube) running from liver to duodenum (there is no gall bladder in the
rat).

• Numerous small pancreatic ducts open into the bile duct as it runs towards the
duodenum. Running in the same mesentery as the bile duct is the main trunk of
the hepatic portal vein which conveys blood from the gut to the liver.

Figure 4: Contents of abdominal cavity of male rat in situ.

Introduction to Human Anatomy and Physiology Lab FG 1011

7
Full Name: Date:
Matric Number: Class:

Figure 5: Technique for revealing the pancreas, bile duct, and hepatic portal vein of the rat.

• Without breaking the mesentery, spread out the ileum to your left and notice
numerous branches of the hepatic portal vein in the mesentery (Figure 6).
Running alongside the hepatic portals are branches of the anterior mesentery
artery but these are generally obscured by fat.

Introduction to Human Anatomy and Physiology Lab FG 1011

8
Full Name: Date:
Matric Number: Class:

Figure 6: Alimentary canal of the rat as seen with the duodenum deflected downwards (see
Figure), the stomach pushed to the right, and the ileum spread out to the left.
(L, lobes of liver; T, thorax; A, abdominal cavity.)

• With the liver pushed forward, deflect the whole of the stomach and intestine to
your left and stretch the mesentery. Running in the mesentery are three median
(unpaired) arteries to the gut (Figure 7): coeliac, anterior mesenteric, and
posterior mesenteric arteries. All three are branches of the dorsal aorta, the first
two arising at about the level of the left kidney, the last where the aorta splits into
the leg arteries.

Introduction to Human Anatomy and Physiology Lab FG 1011

9
Full Name: Date:
Matric Number: Class:

Figure 7: Arteries supplying the alimentary canal of the rat, and associated structures.

Introduction to Human Anatomy and Physiology Lab FG 1011

10