Glycosaminoglycan distribution in the rat uterine cervix during the estrous cycle

OBJECTIVE: To analyze the amount of glycosaminoglycans in the uterine cervix during each phase of the rat estrous cycle. DESIGN: Based on vaginal smears, forty female, regularly cycling rats were divided into four groups (n = 10 for each group): GI - proestrous, GII - estrous, GIII - metaestrous and GIV - diestrous. Animals were sacrificed at each phase of the cycle, and the cervix was immediately removed and submitted to biochemical extraction and determination of sulfated glycosaminoglycans and hyaluronic acid. The results were analyzed by ANOVA followed by the Bonferroni post-hoc test. RESULTS: The uterine cervix had the highest amount of total sulfated glycosaminoglycans and dermatan sulfate during the estrous phase (8.90 ± 0.55 mg/g of cetonic extract, p<0.001; and 8.86 ± 0.57 mg/g of cetonic extract, p<0.001). In addition, there was more heparan sulfate at the cervix during the proestrous phase (0.185 ± 0.03 mg/g of cetonic extract) than during any other phase (p<0.001). There were no significant changes in the concentration of hyaluronic acid in the uterine cervix during the estrous cycle. CONCLUSION: Our data suggest that the amount of total sulfated glycosaminoglycans may be influenced by hormonal fluctuations related to the estrous cycle, with dermatan sulfate and heparan sulfate being the glycosaminoglycans most sensitive to hormonal change.Universidade Federal de São Paulo (UNIFESP) Departmento de Morfologia e GenéticaUniversidade de São Paulo Faculdade de Medicina Departamento de Obstetrícia e GinecologiaUniversidade de São Paulo Instituto de Ciências Biomédicas Department of PharmacologyEscola Paulista de Medicina Department of GynecologyUNIFESP, Departmento de Morfologia e GenéticaEscola Paulista de Medicina Department of GynecologySciEL

Histomorphological analysis and glycosaminoglycan profile in uterine cervix of adult rats during the estrous cycle

Procurou-se avaliar neste estudo, sob o ponto de vista histomorfometrico e bioquimico, a presenca de glicosaminoglicanos sulfatados durante o ciclo estral de ratas virgens adultas, assim como o indice de proliferacao celular epitelial na juncao escamo-colunar do colo uterino, visando a estabelecer uma possivel relacao entre os dados obtidos. Estudaram-se 40 ratas, identificadas quanto a fase do ciclo estral atraves da colpocitologia e classificadas em quatro grupos: Grupo I - proestro; Grupo II estro; Grupo III - metaestro e Grupo IV - diestro. Apos retirados os colos uterinos, seguiram-se os protocolos de fixacao em formol a 10 por cento, desidratacao, diafanizacao e impregnacao em parafina para obtencao de cortes histologicos e, em seguida, coloracao pela Hematoxilina - eosina. Algumas laminas foram coradas pelo Alcian-blue e azul de toluidina, e outras foram submetidas a reacao imunohistoquimica para o PCNA. Cinco colos uterinos de cada grupo foram submetidos a extracao de glicosaminoglicanos e analise por eletroforese em gel de agarose. Notou-se significante aumento de marcacao para o PCNA na fase diestro e um aumento de dermatam sulfato no estro. Identificou-se ainda a presenca de heparam sulfato e ausencia de condroitim sulfato. A analise dos resultados possibilitou concluir que ocorrem variacoes dos glicosaminoglicanos presentes no colo uterino de ratas durante as diversas fases do ciclo estral, o pico de proliferacao celular (nos epitelios cervicais) e hormonio-dependentes. Com relacao ao acido hialuronico nao foram encontradas diferencas significantes entre os varios grupos estudadosBV UNIFESP: Teses e dissertaçõe

Histomorphometric analysis of the effects of creatine on rat myometrium

Objective: To analyze the myometrial thickness of rats subjected to creatine (Cr) ingestion. Study design: A total of 14 rats was equally divided into the control group (ConGr) receiving 1 ml potable water and the creatine group (CrGr) subjected to the ingestion of 1.6 g/kg Cr diluted in 1 ml potable water. At the end of 8 weeks, the animals were anesthetized (xylazine and ketamine) and sacrificed, the uteri and ovaries stained with hematoxylin and eosin, the thickness of both the myometrium and the epithelium measured and the follicles counted. Results: Analysis revealed a significant increase in thickness of the myometrium in the CrGr (272.26 +/- 66.71 mu m) contrasted with that from the ConGr (160.76 +/- 35.65 mu m), CrGr &gt; ConGr (p &lt; 0001). Conclusion: Our data suggest that Cr changed myometrial morphology in rats by enhancing myometrial thickness, but its action mechanism in the smooth muscle is still unclear