Morphology and quantification of sheep pineal glands at pre-pubertal, pubertal and post-pubertal periods.

The pineal gland is a neuroendocrine organ associated with photoperiodic regulation in mammals. The aim of this study was to evaluate the pineal gland at the pre-pubertal, pubertal and post-pubertal periods by means of morphology and stereology. The study examined at total of 24 ovine pineal glands collected from healthy female Akkaraman breed. Thick sections (40 µm) were cut and treated with synaptophysin. Following each thick section, six consecutive sections at a thickness of 5 µm were cut. Each thin section was stained with one of the following dyes: Crossman's modified triple dye, glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP), melatonin marker, periodic acid-Schiff, Von Kossa and AgNOR. The pineal gland volume was measured using Cavalieri's method. The optical fractionator was used to estimate the total number of pinealocytes. The percentage of parenchyma and connective tissue and degree of vascularization were estimated by the area fraction fractionator method. The pineal gland volumes in the pre-pubertal, pubertal and post-pubertal groups were 7.53 ± 1.715 mm3 , 11.20 ± 1.336 mm3 and 17.75 ± 1.188 mm3 , respectively (p < .5). The number of pinealocytes in the pre-pubertal, pubertal and post-pubertal groups was 3,244,000 ± 228,076, 4,438,000 ± 243,610, 7,381,766 ± 406,223, respectively (p < .05). The glands of the post-pubertal group contained the highest amount of connective tissue (11.49 ± 2.103%; p < .5) and the largest GFAP staining area (p < .05). The melatonin staining density was the highest in the pubertal group. The density of lipofuscin staining was higher in the pubertal and post-pubertal groups.

Two- and three-dimensional anatomy of paranasal sinuses in Arabian foals.

The 2- and 3-dimensional (3D) anatomy and the morphometric properties of the paranasal sinuses of the foal have received little or no attention in the literature. The aim of this study was to obtain details of the paranasal sinuses using multiplane CT imaging to create 3D models and to determine morphological and morphometric data for the sinuses using the 3D models. The heads of five female foals were used in this study. The heads were scanned using computed tomography (CT) in the rostrocaudal direction. After the heads had been frozen, anatomical sections were obtained in the scan position. The 3D models of sinuses and the skull were prepared using MIMICS(®). These models were used to assess the surface area and volume of the sinuses, the width, height and orientation of the apertures connecting these sinuses and finally the planar relation of the sinuses with the skull. The right and left sides of all anatomical structures, except the sphenoid sinuses, had symmetric organization on CT images and anatomical sections. The total sinus surface area and volume on both sides were 214.4 cm(2) and 72.9 ml, respectively. The largest and the smallest sinuses were the frontal sinus (41.5 ml) and the middle conchal sinus (0.2 ml), respectively. It was found that the planes bounding the sinuses passed through easily palpable points on the head. In conclusion, 3D modeling in combination with conventional sectional imaging of the paranasal sinuses of the foal may help anatomists, radiologists, clinicians and veterinary students.

The segmental morphometric properties of the horse cervical spinal cord: a study of cadaver.

Although the cervical spinal cord (CSC) of the horse has particular importance in diseases of CNS, there is very little information about its segmental morphometry. The objective of the present study was to determine the morphometric features of the CSC segments in the horse and possible relationships among the morphometric features. The segmented CSC from five mature animals was used. Length, weight, diameter, and volume measurements of the segments were performed macroscopically. Lengths and diameters of segments were measured histologically, and area and volume measurements were performed using stereological methods. The length, weight, and volume of the CSC were 61.6±3.2 cm, 107.2±10.4 g, and 95.5±8.3 cm3, respectively. The length of the segments was increased from C1 to C3, while it decreased from C3 to C8. The gross section (GS), white matter (WM), grey matter (GM), dorsal horn (DH), and ventral horn (VH) had the largest cross-section areas at C8. The highest volume was found for the total segment and WM at C4, GM, DH, and VH at C7, and the central canal (CC) at C3. The data obtained not only contribute to the knowledge of the normal anatomy of the CSC but may also provide reference data for veterinary pathologists and clinicians.

Effects of low level electromagnetic field exposure at 2.45 GHz on rat cornea.

PURPOSE: To investigate the effects of low level electromagnetic field (low level-EMF) exposure, as frequently encountered in daily life, on the normal rat cornea using histological and stereological method. METHODS: Twenty-two adult male Wistar rats were randomly divided into two groups: Study group (n = 11) and control group (n = 11). Rats in the study group were exposed to 2.45 GHz microwave (MW) radiation (11.96 ± 0.89 V/m), 0.25 W/kg specific absorption rate (SAR) for 2 hours each day for 21 days. The corneal thickness and the anterior epithelium corneal thickness were measured using two different methods. RESULTS: Using the histological method, the mean corneal thicknesses in the control and study group were 278.9 ± 54.5 µm, and 272.4 ± 85.6 µm, respectively. There was no statistically significant difference between the groups (p > 0.05). The anterior corneal epithelium thickness was 28.1 ± 4.9 µm in the control group and 31.7 ± 5.5 µm in the study group. There were statistically differences between the groups with regard to the thickness of anterior epithelium (p < 0.05). In the measurement made by the stereological method, the percentage of the cornea occupied by anterior corneal epithelium was 15.94% in the control group and 17.9% in the study group. Despite the fact that there was a relation between increased anterior epithelial area (AEA) and radiation exposure, no statistically significant relationship in area fraction of each compartment was found between the control and study groups. CONCLUSIONS: Results of this preliminary study show that exposure to MW radiation might cause alterations in the rat cornea.