title: The cranial cervical ganglion and its branches in the yak (Bos grunniens).
abstract: The heads and necks of 10 yaks were dissected to study the shape, location, arrangement, and branches of the cranial cervical ganglion. The ganglion was a greyish fusiform structure, mean length 19.72 mm, width 7.65 mm and depth 4.55 mm, located on the rostrolateral surface of the m. longus capitis. Approximately 25% of the ganglion was covered by the tympanic bulla, the rest by the m. stylohyoideus. The branches of the cranial cervical ganglion included the internal and external carotid nerves, sympathetic trunk and the branches connecting with the glossopharyngeal, vagus and hypoglossal nerves. In one animal the right cranial cervical ganglia was a greyish pyramidal structure 10 mm long, 8 mm wide and 5 mm thick but the left ganglion was similar to those found in the other specimens examined.
authors.affiliation: School of Life Science, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, Gansu 730000, PR China.
authors.forename: Bao-Ping
authors.initials: BP
authors.lastname: Shao
authors.forename: Yan-Ping
authors.initials: YP
authors.lastname: Ding
authors.forename: Zhao-Hui
authors.initials: ZH
authors.lastname: Xie
authors.forename: Hong-Xian
authors.initials: HX
authors.lastname: Yu
authors.forename: Beate
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Brand-Saberi
authors.forename: Jian-Lin
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Wang
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002417:Cattle / Q000033:anatomy & histology*; D006257:Head / Q000294:innervation; D009333:Neck / Q000294:innervation; D017783:Superior Cervical Ganglion / Q000033:anatomy & histology*