From Pathology Education Instructional Resource
This is a low-power photomicrograph showing a cross section of the tongue. There is an area along the surface of the tongue where the normal epithelium has been lost and there are areas of ulceration (arrows).
This higher-power photomicrograph shows the epithelium (1), the edge of the ulcer (2), and the ulcerated epithelium (3). There is an inflammatory exudate at the base of the ulcer and some necrotic cells where the epithelium once was present.
This is a medium-power photomicrograph of epithelium at the edge of the ulcer. Even at this power, amphophilic (dark, blue-purple-staining) intranuclear inclusion bodies can be seen in the epithelial cells. Note the inflammatory infiltrate in the subepithelium.
This is a higher-power photomicrograph of epithelium at the edge of the ulcer. Amphophilic intranuclear inclusion bodies can be seen in almost all of the epithelial cells in this section.
This is a high-power photomicrograph of epithelium near the edge of the ulcer. The cells that have been invaded by the herpes virus contain intranuclear accumulations of amphophilic viral inclusions (arrows).