Morphological and morphometric studies of the aorta, pulmonary trunk, and heart of streptozotocin-induced diabetic Wistar rats

Micro-anatomical changes in the aorta, pulmonary trunk, and left ventricle of Wistar rats were studied after the administration of streptozotocin. Twenty adult Rattus norvegicus were randomly assigned into two groups (control and diabetic) of ten rats each. Diabetes mellitus was experimentally induced in the diabetic group of rats by daily intra-peritoneal administration of multiple doses of 40 mg/kg streptozotocin dissolved in 0.1 M sodium citrate buffer for five consecutive days. The control group was given the equivalent volume of citrate buffer. The animals were monitored for four weeks after streptozotocin administration. Post sacrifice, the left ventricle, aorta, and pulmonary trunk were excised, weighed, and fixed by immersion in 10% formol saline. The tissues were processed for paraffin embedding, and sections of 6 &#956;m thickness were produced and stained with H & E for general histological observations, and Verhoeff-van Gieson elastic fibre stain to demonstrate elastic fibres in these cardiovascular structures. The data obtained were analyzed with descriptive and inferential statistics. Histopathological and morphometric examinations of the stained sections showed a significant increase in the thickness of the tunica intima of aorta (t = &#8211;7.49; df = 9; p < 0.05) and pulmonary trunk (t = &#8211;10.81; df = 9; p < 0.05) in diabetic rats (14.59 &#177; 1.189 mm and 11.307 &#177; 0.863 mm, respectively) when compared to that of the control group (3.62 &#177; 0.353 mm and 3.22 &#177; 0.244 mm, respectively). In addition, the distribution of elastic and collagen fibres was sparse in the hearts of the diabetic group when compared to that of the control group. The findings of this study demonstrated that diabetes mellitus might cause some alterations in the microanatomy of cardiovascular structures

Alcohol-diazepam combination: implication on the histoarchitectural profile of the hippocampus in Male Rats

Objective: Damage to hippocampal neurons has not been described as a constant finding in studies addressing the effects of alcohol and diazepam in laboratory based studies, the present study aimed to changes in the histoarchitectural of the hippocampus following administration in male Wistar rats.Methodology: Twenty male Wistar rats were randomly divided into control (A), 3 mg/kg diazepam (B), 30% v/v ethanol (C), and 30% v/v ethanol plus 3 mg/kg diazepam (D). All administration was done orally for 30 days.Major findings: There were no distortions in the hippocampal profile of the rats in the control group. The histoarchitectural profile of the hippocampus of the rats in group B showed less significant damage. The histoarchitectural profile of the hippocampus of the rats in group C was disrupted with evidence of enlarged cell bodies and distorted membrane. The hippocampal profile of the rats in group D were with marked neuronal necrosis and variable neuronal loss within the hippocampal subfield.Conclusion: It was observed that co-administration of ethanol and diazepam conferred neurodegenerative effects on the neuronal profile of the hippocampus in rats.Keywords: Addiction, abuse, use, dependence, dru

Alcohol-pentazocine combination: implication on the cytoarchitectural profile of the medial prefrontal cortex and cerebellum of juvenile male rats

Recently, Pentazocine and alcohol have become one of the drugs abused in the developing countries. However, there is the dearth of information on the effects of these substances on the cytological profile of the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) and cerebellar cortex; hence this study was aimed at evaluating the effect of these substances on the cytoarchitectural profile of the mPFC and cerebellar cortex of juvenile male rats. Twenty-four juvenile male rats were used for this study. They were randomly assigned to control (A), Alcohol-treated (B), Pentazocine-treated (C), and Pentazocine-Alcohol-treated group (D). Exposure to the various treatment paradigm was done s.c. twice daily (6hrs interval) for 14 days. It was observed that the cytological profile of the mPFC of the rats in the control groups was visible and well defined. In the B, C and D groups, there were numerous forms of neurodegeneration. There was also an increase in the density of astrocytes with the presence of glial scars. Furthermore, features of degenerative changes were also seen in the cerebellar cortex of the rats in the B, C, and D groups. It was observed from this study that exposure to Pentazocine-Alcohol combination triggers inflammatory and neurodegenerative processes in the cytoarchitectural profile of the mPFC and cerebellar cortex in juvenile male rats. These features could impair the functional integrity associated with these brain regions.Keywords: addiction, substance abuse, opioid, male, youn

Histomorphological and morphometric studies of the pancreatic islet cells of diabetic rats treated with extracts of Annona muricata

Microanatomical changes in the pancreatic islet cells of streptozotocin induced diabetic Wistar rats were studied after treatment with methanolic extracts of Annona muricata leaves. Thirty adult Wistar rats were randomly assigned into three groups (control, untreated diabetic group, and A. muricata-treated diabetic group) of ten rats each. Diabetes mellitus was experimentally induced in groups B and C by a single intra-peritoneal injection of 80 mg/kg streptozotocin dissolved in 0.1 M citrate buffer. The control rats were intraperitoneally injected with an equivalent volume of citrate buffer. Daily intra peritoneal injections of 100 mg/kg A. muricata were administered to group C rats for two weeks. Post sacrifice the pancreases of the rats were excised and fixed in Bouin&#8217;s fluid. The tissues were processed for paraffin embedding and sections of 5 &#956;m thickness were produced and stained with H & E, Gomori aldehyde fuchsin, and chrome alum haematoxylin-phloxine for demonstration of the &#946;-cells of islets of pancreatic islets. Histomorphological and morphometric examination of the stained pancreatic sections showed a significant increase in the number, diameter, and volume of the &#946;-cells of pancreatic islets of the A. muricata-treated group (5.67 &#177; 0.184 N/1000 &#956;m2, 5.38 &#177; 0.093 &#956;m and 85.12 &#177; 4.24 &#956;m3, respectively) when compared to that of the untreated diabetic group of rats (2.85 &#177; 0.361 N/1000 &#956;m2, 2.85 &#177; 0.362 &#956;m and 69.56 &#177; 5.216 &#956;m3, respectively). The results revealed regeneration of the &#946;-cells of islets of pancreatic islet of rats treated with extract of A. muricata. (Folia Morphol 2010; 69, 2: 92-100

Cyanide cytotoxicity and the follocular cells of thyroid gland in male Wistar rats

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HCV co-infection is associated with metabolic abnormalities among HAART naive HIV-infected persons

Objectives: To determine the metabolic abnormalities among Hepatitis C Virus (HCV) coinfected HAART naïve HIV infected persons within the adult ARV clinic of the University College Hospital/University of Ibadan, Ibadan, NigeriaMethods: This was a retrospective study involving the review of clinical records of newly recruited HIV-infected persons in the adult antiretroviral (ARV) clinic over a 12month period (January - December 2006). Baseline results for fasting plasma glucose (FPG) and fasting lipid profile were retrieved.Results: Out of the 1,260 HIV infected persons seen during the study period, HCV co-infection was found in 75 (6%) persons. The median values for total cholesterol, LDL-cholesterol and HDLcholesterol were lower in the HCV co-infected persons. HIV-HCV co–infection was associated with a 0.31 mmol/L depression in Total Cholesterol (TC). The median FPG concentration was significantly higher in HIV-HCV co–infected than HIV only infected persons (5.33mmol/L vs. 5.00mmol/L, p = 0.047). However, regression analysis showed there was no relationship between the HIV-HCV coinfected state and fasting glucose levels.Conclusion: HIV-HCV co-infection may be associated with a predictable decline in plasma cholesterol, but FPG may not be sufficient to demonstrate insulin resistance in these persons.Keywords: HCV, HIV, metabolic abnormalitie