Stereological analysis of the adrenal gland cortex in the male rats treated with hydrocortisone
Abstract
In this work, the reaction of the adrenal cortex of the male rats to treatment with different hydrocortisone doses applied during the juvenile stage of development was studied using stereological methods. Animals were divided into 6 groups. Groups 1, 2, 3 and 5 were treated for four weeks with 2, 4, 8 or 32 mg hydrocortisone (Hy)/kg b.w./day, respectively. Animals from the group 4 were injected with decreasing Hy doses (16, 8, 4 and 2 mg Hy/kg b.w./day), changing the dose every week. All Hy-treated groups were compared with the corresponding control animals. Animals were sacrificed 24 h after the last Hy injection. The results obtained by stereological analysis showed differences in the adrenal cortex reaction to Hy application which were dependent on whether physiological (2 and 4 mg) or pharmacological (8; 16, 8, 4 and 2; 32 mg) doses of this glucocorticoid hormone were used. Physiological Hy doses led to a significant increase of the absolute volume of the adrenal cortex, as well as that of zona fasciculata volume and total number of the cells within this zone in comparison with the controls. At the same time, the aplication of pharmacological doses of Hy resulted in a conspicuous decrease of the same parameters comparing to the controls.