SD大鼠胚胎-胎仔发育毒性试验的基础数据

目的 检测胚胎-胎仔发育毒性试验中SD大鼠妊娠期的体重、生殖功能指标及胎鼠的各项发育指标,为SD大鼠的发育毒性研究提供参考数据.方法 395只SD雌性大鼠,交配成功后,于妊娠第20天剖检孕鼠,检查孕鼠的内脏器官有无异常,称量子宫重量、窝重和胎盘重量,计数黄体数、着床数、活胎数、吸收胎数和死胎数.胎鼠共5272只,将一半胎鼠放人固定液中做内脏检查,另一半胎鼠进行骨骼检查,检查胎鼠外观、内脏和骨骼有无异常和变异.结果 和结论 建立SD大鼠胚胎-胎仔发育毒性试验中各项指标的数据库,求得各指标的正常值及标准差,95％的可信区间,为生殖毒性研究提供正常值的参考依据.     

近交系MIJ和HFJ大鼠部分生理数据测定和分析

目的测定近交系大鼠MIJ、HFJ和封闭群Wistar大鼠的脏器系数、体温、呼吸频率、肠管长度,观察两个近交系大鼠的生理表型。方法 采用常规方法对大鼠脏器系数、体温、呼吸频率及肠管长度进行测定,并对HFJ、MIJ、Wistar大鼠三者间进行比较。结果①体重:HFJ、MIJ、Wistar大鼠同性别间比较差异无显著性。②脏器系数:HFJ与Wistar大鼠雄性间心脏、肺,雌性间子宫、肝;MIJ与Wistar大鼠雄性间肺、脾,雌性间脑、脾,差异均有显著性。HFJ与MIJ大鼠雄性间脑,雌性间脑和脾差异有显著性。HFJ大鼠不同性别间肝、脑、眼球差异有显著性。MIJ大鼠不同性别间,脑、心脏、肾、肺、脾和眼球差异均有显著性。③体温:HFJ雌性大鼠明显高于Wistar雌性,雄性间差异无显著性。HFJ大鼠雌性高于雄性,差异有显著性。④呼吸频率:HFJ雌性大鼠低于同性Wistar大鼠,MIJ大鼠雌性和雄性均高于同性别Wistar大鼠,差异有显著性。⑤肠管长度:HFJ与Wistar同性别间比较,肠管总长和小肠差异有显著性。MIJ与Wistar大鼠雄性间肠管总长、大肠、小肠、盲肠差异均有显著性,雌性间肠管总长、小肠、盲肠差异有显著性。HFJ与MIJ大鼠同性别间差异均无显著性,不同性别的HFJ和MIJ的肠管总长、大肠和小肠差异有显著性。结论 MIJ和HFJ近交系大鼠的脏器系数、体温、呼吸频率、肠管长度都各有其独特的生理概貌。     

羊骨胶原肽对青春期大鼠催乳素和促黄体生成素分泌脉冲的影响

目的研究羊骨胶原肽(sheep bone collagen peptide,SBCP)对类固醇诱导的去卵巢大鼠催乳素(pro-lactin,PRL)和促黄体生成素(luteinizing hormone,LH)分泌脉冲的影响。方法 6周龄子宫颈未开口的青春期SD大鼠实施双侧卵巢摘除手术,康复1周或3周后以类固醇替代方法诱导PRL和LH脉冲,处理组同时按1000 mg/(kg.d)的剂量以SBCP灌胃,通过颈导管采集血样,利用放射免疫技术测定各组大鼠外周血中的LH和PRL浓度。结果对于术后康复1周的大鼠,SBCP对LH脉冲振幅起到增强作用,而对PRL脉冲没有影响;对于术后康复3周的大鼠,SBCP对LH和PRL脉冲振幅均表现为降低作用,但卵巢摘除后立即给予SBCP可减弱这种降低作用。结论雌激素和孕激素替代注射的同时,补充羊骨胶原肽,不仅仍可诱导LH和PRL脉冲的产生,还可预防由于卵巢摘除带来的骨代谢紊乱,免疫力低下等不良影响,因而是对现有类固醇替代方法的改良。     

Changes in the distribution of ZO-1, occludin,and claudins in the rat uterine epithelium during the estrous cycle

During the estrous cycle, the endometrium epithelium experiences marked cellular structural changes. For fertilization to proceed, maintenance of an adequate uterine environment by ovarian hormones is essential. Epithelial cells lining the uterine lumen are associated with each other by tight junctions (TJs), which regulate the passage of ions and molecules through the paracellular pathway. The aim of the present study was to assess by confocal immunofluorescence the distribution pattern of the TJ proteins ZO-1, occludin, and claudins 1–7 in the rat uterus during the estrous cycle. Our results reveal that on proestrus, the day when mating takes place, ZO-1, occludin, and claudins 1 and 5 are located in the TJs, while claudins 3 and 7 display a basolateral distribution. In contrast, on metestrus day, when no sexual mating occurs and the uterine lumen is devoid of secretions, none of these proteins were detected in the TJ region, and only a diffuse cytosolic staining was observed for some of the proteins. On estrus and diestrus days, an intermediate situation was encountered, since ZO-1 localized in the TJs, whereas occludin was no longer detectable in the TJs. The distribution of claudins during these stages varied from the lowermost portion of the basolateral membrane to its apex. In conclusion, the results show that the protein composition of TJs present in the luminal epithelial cells of the uterus changes during the different days of the estrous cycle, and suggest that the expression of TJ proteins participates in providing an adequate environment for a successful fertilization.This work was supported by grants PAPIIT (IN210902, IX228504) and PAIP (6190-08) from the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM), and by grants G34511-M and 37846-N from the Mexican National Council on Science and Technology (CONACYT).     

Selective visualisation of neuroepithelial bodies in vibratome slices of living lung by 4-Di-2-ASP in various animal species

Pulmonary neuroepithelial bodies (NEBs) are extensively innervated organoid groups of neuroendocrine cells that lie in the epithelium of intrapulmonary airways. Our present understanding of the morphology of NEBs is comprehensive, but direct physiological studies have so far been challenging because the extremely diffuse distribution of NEBs makes them inaccessible in vivo and because a reliable in vitro model is lacking. Our aim has been to optimise an in vitro method based on vibratome slices of living lungs, a model that includes NEBs, the surrounding tissues and at least part of their complex innervation. This in vitro model offers satisfactory access to pulmonary NEBs, provided that they can be differentiated from other tissue elements. The model was first optimised for living rat lung slices. Neutral red staining, reported to stain rabbit NEBs, proved unsuccessful in rat slices. On the other hand, the styryl pyridinium dye, 4-(4-diethylaminostyryl)-N-methylpyridinium iodide (4-Di-2-ASP), showed brightly fluorescent cell groups, reminiscent of NEBs, in the airway epithelium of living lung slices from rat. In addition, nerve fibres innervating the NEBs were labelled. The reliable and specific labelling of pulmonary NEBs by 4-Di-2-ASP was corroborated by immunostaining for protein gene-product 9.5. Live cell imaging and propidium iodide staining further established the acceptable viability of 4-Di-2-ASP-labelled NEB cells in lung slices, even over long periods. Importantly, the in vitro model and 4-Di-2-ASP staining procedure for pulmonary NEBs appeared to be equally reproducible in mouse, hamster and rabbit lungs. Diverse immunocytochemical procedures could be applied to the lung slices providing an opportunity to combine physiological and functional morphological studies. Such an integrated approach offers additional possibilities for elucidating the function(s) of pulmonary NEBs in health and disease. This work was supported by the following research grants: Fund for Scientific Research Flanders (G.0155.01 to D.A.), NOI-BOF (to D.A.) and BOF-RUCA Small Projects (KPO2 to D.A., I.B. and F.V.M.) from the University of Antwerp.     

Cancer cachexia modifies the zonal distribution of lipid metabolism-related proteins in rat liver

Cancer cachexia is a syndrome that causes profound metabolic disruption. Lipid metabolism in the liver is markedly affected. We investigated the effect of cachexia upon liver-acinus lipid-metabolism zonation in Walker 245 carcinosarcoma-bearing rats (TB). The expression of protein (by Western blotting) and mRNA (by semi-quantitative polymerase chain reaction) of the enzymes of the carnitine palmitoyltransferase system (CPT I and CPT II) and of liver fatty-acid-binding protein (L-FABP) was studied. Although no changes were found for these parameters, the maximal activities (by radioassay) of CPT I and II were reduced (P<0.05) in TB compared with controls. CPT II activity in the perivenous (PV) region was higher in TB compared with controls. The distribution of CPT II and L-FABP (by immunohistochemistry) within the acinus was modified by cachexia: whereas CPT II positivity was restricted to the PV zone, L-FABP labelling shifted from periportal (control) to perivenous (TB) zone. These changes in metabolic zonation, together with decreased CPT II activity, may contribute to the aggravation of cachexia. The authors thank FAPESP for financial support (00/03761-2) and for the scholarship awarded to M. Kazantzis.     

Diazepam affects both level and amplitude of rat locomotor activity rhythm but has no effect on core body temperature

The present study investigates the effects of a chronic administration of diazepam, a benzodiazepine widely used as an anxiolytic, on locomotor activity and body core temperature rhythms in male Wistar rats housed under 12:12 light:dark (LD) cycle conditions. Diazepam was administered subcutaneously for 3 wks in a dosage of 3 mg/kg body weight/day, 1 h before the onset of darkness. Diazepam increased the level of locomotor activity from the first day until the end of treatment, and also increased the amplitude of the activity circadian rhythm, but only on the third wk of treatment. Diazepam exerted no effects on the length of the period and did not affect the phase of the locomotor activity rhythm. The body temperature rhythm of rats was affected neither by short-term (a single injection) nor by long-term (every day for 3 wks) diazepam treatment. Diazepam lacked effect on body core temperature even on the first day of administration, thereby ruling out the possibility of drug tolerance development. The fact that diazepam affects locomotor activity, but not core body temperature, suggests that different mechanisms mediate the actions of diazepam on locomotor activity and on core body temperature.     

Bone loss induced by ovariectomy in rats is prevented by gene transfer of parathyroid hormone or an Arg-Gly-Asp-containing peptide

Osteoporosis is a major and growing healthcare concern as the population ages. The genes of both a Arg-Gly-Asp (RGD)-containing peptide and parathyroid hormone (PTH) were used to reduce bone loss induced by ovariectomy (OVX) in rats. Plasmids with either RGD or PTH gene were delivered into the quadriceps of OVX rats. The expression of the genes was detected by RT-PCR and radioimmunoassay. Analysis of bone mineral density, bone mechanical testing and bone mineral content indicated an improvement in bone properties in both RGD-transferred and PTH-transferred rats compared to OVX rats. Gene transfer of either RGD or PTH is therefore a possible approach to prevent bone loss in OVX rats thus providing a potential method to prevent osteoporosis in clinical situations.These authors contributed equally to this work