What Is the Fungiform Papilla?

Many small reddish protrusions on the mucosa on the back of the tongue are a type of tongue papilla. The number is small, distributed between the filamentous nipples on the back of the tongue, and slightly larger than the filamentous nipples. It is more common at the tip of the tongue and the lateral edge of the tongue. The color is red, the top is round and mushroom-like.

Many small reddish protrusions on the mucosa on the back of the tongue are a type of tongue papilla. The number is small, distributed between the filamentous nipples on the back of the tongue, and slightly larger than the filamentous nipples. It is more common at the tip of the tongue and the lateral edge of the tongue. The color is red, the top is round and mushroom-like.

Chinese name

Fungal nipples

Foreign name

Bacterial nipples

Histological structure of fungal nipples

The epithelial layer is thin, without obvious keratosis, and the lamina propria has many blood vessels, so the color is red. Capillary microscopy can be used to see obvious blood vessels. The fungus-shaped nipple contains taste buds, so it has a taste function. It is about 0.7-1.5mm high and about 0.4-1.0mm in diameter. Hypertrophy and congestion of the strawberry tongue's fungal nipples are often a sign of diseases such as scarlet fever, Kawasaki disease, and riboflavin deficiency. When the fungal nipples and filamentous nipples atrophy, causing the tongue papilla to disappear into a smooth sheet shape, as smooth as a mirror surface, said smooth tongue or mirror tongue.

Fungal nipple function

The taste receptors are taste bud cells, which are mainly distributed in the fungal nipples of the tongue, and are the organs that sense the taste in the 2/3 part of the tongue. The number of fungal nipples and taste function of normal healthy people are not significantly different between men, women and races, and there is no significant difference between the left and right sides of the tongue of the same individual. The number of fungal nipples and taste function are significantly positively related. The main factor determining taste function.

Fungal nipple- related lesions

1. In the normal group, the color of the tongue papilla is more uniform, the blood vessels are bright red, and the blood vessels are reddish. The microvessels in the proper layer of the nipples are abundant, the side view of the nipples, the blood vessels are tree-like, the top view, the blood vessels are chrysanthemum, and the diameter of the microvascular tubes is uniform. Walk smoothly.

2. In the edema group, the color of the tongue papilla is uneven, the blood vessels are bright red, the tissue around the blood vessels is white, and the light transmittance is high; the top view of the nipples is halo-shaped, the microvessels in the intrinsic layer are significantly reduced, and the blood vessels in the lateral view are like, and the microvessels are dilated. The border is unclear.

Clinical application of fungal nipples

Some experimental results show that whether it is clamped or cut off the lingual nerve, the shape of the tongue-shaped nipples and taste buds on the injured side is significantly reduced, the number is significantly reduced, or even disappeared. At 100 days, the lingual nerve is repaired immediately after the injury and cut The fungus-shaped nipples and taste buds of the animals have been completely regenerated and recovered, and the fungal-shaped nipples and taste buds of the lingual nerve animals have not been repaired after being severed, and have no signs of regeneration. After repairing with an epidural anastomosis, the atrophied and degraded fungal-shaped nipples and taste buds can be regenerated and restored, and the tongue-shaped fungus-shaped nipples and taste buds can be regenerated and restored as an objective indicator of successful tongue nerve repair. These results indicate that the degree of injury of the lingual nerve and the results are consistent with the classification of peripheral nerve injury the fungal papillae and taste buds have a strong ability to regenerate the fungal papillae and taste buds have a strong dependence on the lingual nerves.