WILTIMS #58: Why so serous?

We only had one 2-hour anatomy lab on the schedule today, so I don't have much to report. We were dissecting the parotid and temporal regions of the head (above, in front of and below the ear). It was not the most elegant dissection thanks to the slapdash layouts of the nerves, blood vessels and glands in relation to the bones and muscles, but we made do and managed to see most of what we were supposed to see.

The salivary glands: #1 parotid,
#2 submandibular, #3 sublingual

TIL: The parotid gland and pancreas are the only two glands that produce amylase, the enzyme that breaks down starches into sugar. The parotid gland secretes serous fluid, including the amylase enzyme, into the mouth via a duct that can, on rare occasions, become occluded causing the sides of the face to swell. This condition is easily confused with the mumps, which also results in the swelling of the parotid gland, but from the inflammatory action of the mumps virus rather than the obstruction of the parotid duct.

Seizures originating in the temporal lobe are associated with the perception of an strange smell. These seizures can be caused by radiation from the treatment of salivary gland cancers located in the parotid gland.