Premium
Is the phrenic nerve myelinated fiber distribution affected in short term experimental diabetes?
Author(s) -
Alcântara Adriana Cristina Licursi,
Tanaka Natália Massumi,
Fazan Valéria Paula Sassoli
Publication year - 2012
Publication title -
the faseb journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.709
H-Index - 277
eISSN - 1530-6860
pISSN - 0892-6638
DOI - 10.1096/fasebj.26.1_supplement.725.13
Subject(s) - phrenic nerve , pentobarbital , medicine , axon , diabetes mellitus , atrophy , nerve fiber , distribution (mathematics) , streptozotocin , anatomy , respiratory system , anesthesia , endocrinology , mathematics , mathematical analysis
Previous reports from our laboratory showed that chronic experimental diabetes affects the shape of myelinated fiber normal distribution histogram in the phrenic nerve [1]. We aimed to investigate if this distribution is also affected in the short term experimental diabetes. Male Wistar rats (N=6) were rendered diabetic for 15 days, by a single injection of streptozotocin. Control rats received vehicle. Under pentobarbital anesthesia, rats were killed and phrenic nerves were prepared for semi‐thin transverse sections investigated by light microscopy and morphometry. Our results show that control nerves myelinated fiber distributions are bimodal, with peaks at 2.0 and 5.0 μm. Diabetic nerve distributions were skewed to the right, with peaks at 2.5 and 5.5 μm, showing reduction of the frequency of the large fibers. Control nerves myelinated axon distributions are unimodal, with peak at 3.0 μm and diabetic nerve distributions were skewed to the right, with peak at 3.5. G‐ratio distributions were unimodal in both groups, being the diabetic nerves distribution skewed to the left, suggesting the presence of axonal atrophy. Our results confirm previous reports [1] of axonal neuropathy in phrenic nerves of diabetic rats, adding to the literature that this neuropathy has a very early onset.