To investigate the variation in expression of vimentin and desmin in the rumen of goat by analyzing the types and distribution of positive cells, rumen tissue fixed in formalin and embedded in paraffin was used that had been sourced from adult (10-month-old) goats. The rumen tissue was stained by immunohistochemical labeling with antibodies against vimentin and desmin. Vimentin-immunoreactivity (Vim-ir) was extensively expressed in the cells with some processes of the lamina propria of ruminal papillae and the subepithelial region. However, the positive cells of lamina propria of ruminal papillae appeared with thin biopolar (spindle-shaped) cytoplasmic processes. In the lamina propria, Vim-ir was found in the fibroblasts or fibroblasts-like cells, which have longer processes. While, within the muscular layer, it was also strongly localized in the cells of interstitial space between the smooth muscle bundles and these cells were observed satellite-shaped with some thin processes. In addition, Vim-ir was also noted in glial cells of ganglion and nerves predominantly in the endoneurium and around the perineurium. In contrast, desmin-immunoreactivity (Des-ir) was only noted within the smooth muscle cells of rumen. This study first time reported the expression of vimentin and desmin within the rumen of goat, which may play a critical role in the physiological processes and prove to be helpful in future studies to compare different abnormal conditions/diseases in the rumen of goat.

Key words: Desmin, Goat, Intermediates filaments, Rumen, Vimentin