Structural alterations induced by botulinum toxin injection in juvenile versus adult rat muscle

To investigate whether botulinum neurotoxin type A [BoNT-A] injections produce the same structural changes in juvenile and adult muscle. The present study was carried out in the Department of Anatomy, Faculty of Medicine, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia from October 2010 to May 2011. A total of 32 adult and 32 juvenile rats were used. Electron microscopy and immuno-histochemical techniques were used to conduct the morphological study. Neurofilament immunohistochemistry method was used. The results indicate that the use of BoNT-A injections induced morphological changes in the form of muscle fiber atrophy, disorganization of the muscle fiber structure, extension of nerve terminal sprouts, and formation of new neuromuscular junctions. The same set of structural changes took place in both groups. However, the time scale of these changes occurred earlier in juvenile rats than adult muscle. The injection of BoNT-A leads to morphological changes in juvenile and adult rat muscle. These changes were the same in both groups

Development of fetal rat pancreatic islet A cells. A quantitative and immunocytochemical study

To perform a detailed quantitative immunocytochemical study of the development of fetal rat pancreatic islet A cells. Pancreases were obtained from 19 and 21-day- old fetal rats. Ten rats were used per each group. Non-fasting blood glucose levels were measured to confirm that the animals were normoglycemic. The pregnant rats were anesthetized by ether inhalation, and the fetuses were removed from their uteruses. They were fixed in buffered neutral formalin, dehydrated and embedded in paraplast and serially sectioned [5 um]. We examined 32-48 islets [8-12 per section] for each fetus. Sections were stained by avidin biotin complex technique. A quantitative study was performed on the pancreatic islet A cells. Carl Zeiss software from Zeiss was used in this study. This study was carried out at the Department of Anatomy, King Abdul-Aziz University, Jeddah, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia during the period January to December 2005. The volume density and the number of A cells showed a significant increase during the last days of gestation. All other parameters showed a significant increase during the last days of gestation. The A cell nuclear diameter and volume did not increase significantly during the last days of pregnancy. The A cells were well stained and occupied the peripheral part of the islets. The present study represented a detailed quantitative immunohistochemical study and demonstrated that the size of the endocrine tissue and the islet A cells increased significantly during the last days of gestation

Structural study on cultured isolated fetal rat pancreatic islets

To perform a morphometric and structural study of the cultured isolated fetal rat pancreatic islets. Islets of the fetal rat pancreas, aged 22 days were isolated by the standard procedure of collagenase digestion and culture technique. The islets were cultured for 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 days. The islets were counted under a dissecting microscope and islet diameter and purity were measured under a phase contrast microscope fitted with a calibrated grid. The islet specimens were fixed in buffered neutral formalin, dehydrated in alcohol and embedded in parablast. Sections were stained with hematoxylin and eosin. This study was conducted in King Fahd Medical Research Center, Faculty of Medicine, King Abdul-Aziz University, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, during 2003 and 2004. The purity of the cultured islets gradually increased with time and was significantly different between the cultured groups. The number of the cultured islets gradually decreased with time. The islet diameter gradually increased with culture period. The islet purity and diameter were significantly different between the cultured groups. Parablast sections stained with hematoxylin and eosin showed that the shape and histological structure of the cultured islets were intact. The results of the present work represent an extensive morphometric structural study of isolated cultured fetal islets. The culture islet diameter and purity showed gradual increase with culture period, while the islet number showed gradual decrease

Immunohistochemical and morphometric study of the development of fetal and newborn rat pancreatic islets

The aim of this study is to perform a detailed morphometric immunohistochemical study of the development of fetal and newborn rat pancreatic islets. Twenty-four pancreases were obtained from 19 and 21-day-old fetal rats, one and 4-day-old newborn rats. They were fixed in buffered neutral formalin, dehydrated and embedded in paraplast. Sections were stained with anti-insulin antibodies. A morphometric study was performed on the pancreatic islets at the Department of Anatomy, King Abdul-Aziz University, Jeddah, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, between 2001 and 2002. The volume density of B cells showed a gradual increase during the last days of gestation and a slight increase during the first 4 days after birth. All the other morphometric parameters showed a gradual increase during the last days of gestation and during the first days after birth. The B cell nuclear diameter and volume showed a slight increase after birth. The B cells were well stained and present in the central part of fetal and newborn islets, while, the other islet cells were present in the periphery of the islets. The size of the endocrine tissue, which was represented by the islet diameter, islet volume, islet volume density, total number of islet cells, number of B cells and volume density of B cells showed a progressive increase during the perinatal period

Study of the anatomical variations of the musculocutaneous nerve

To study the anatomical variations of the musculocutaneous nerve. Fifty-four arms from embalmed adult cadavers were utilized for this investigation. They were carefully dissected and examined for any anatomical variations of the musculocutaneous nerve. This study was performed at the Department of Anatomy, King Abdul-Aziz University, Jeddah, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia between 2001 and 2003. Four anomalies of the musculocutaneous nerve were found in this study. One case showed that the musculocutaneous nerve pierced the coracobrachialis muscle and passed inside the muscle for some distance. The nerve pierced the coracobrachialis muscle again, and it ran downward and medially and joined the median nerve at the middle of the arm. The brachial artery was sandwiched between the musculocutaneous and the median nerves. Three cases demonstrated that the musculocutaneous nerve did not pierce the coracobrachialis muscle and passed downward and medial to it. The nerve joined the median nerve at the junction of the upper third with the lower two-thirds of the arm. The musculocutaneous nerve was completely absent in one case. In another case, the musculocutaneous nerve originated from the upper part of the median nerve. The knowledge of the anatomical variations of the musculocutaneous nerve may have clinical and surgical implications