| Abstract |
Background: One of the typical manifestations of prolonged hyperglycemia is peripheral neuropathy perhaps due to destructive effects on the primary sensory neurons in the dorsal root ganglia (DrG). Therefore, the current study was designed to analyze the impact of experimental hyperglycemia on DrG of laboratory animals. Material and Methods: 30 adult albino rats were divided into five groups, having six rats per group: control, two week, two month, four month and six month. Diabetes was induced by a single dose of streptozotocin administered through intraperitoneal route (60 mg/kg). Animal body weight and blood sugar were measured at biweekly interval. At the end of the experimental duration, animals were euthanized by deep ether anesthesia and blood samples were collected by direct puncture of heart into sterilized plastic vials for biochemical analyses. Animals were perfused with Karnovsky fixative. After 48 hours tissue samples were collected and processed for light microscopical studies. Results: Biochemical analyses and histopathological features revealed that progressively increasing duration of hyperglycemia was associated with reduced serum total protein and increased serum creatinine; decrease proportion of small and medium-sized neurons, increasing frequency of dark and dead neurons. It was also associated with increase in the amount and thickness of collagen in the capsule of ganglia, perineuronal capsule and endoneurium. Conclusion: Long-standing hyperglycemia with increased neuronal death and deposition of collagen fibers in sensory ganglia may be among the important contributing factors in the development of diabetic peripheral neuropathy.
KEYWORDS: Collagen, Diabetes, Dorsal root ganglia, Neuropathy. |
