A Quantitative Histopathology study on rats' brainstem was used to analyze morphological alterations in the neurons and glial cells of rats that received inhaled tetrahydrocanabinol for 4, 8 and 12 weeks. Puffing of smoke was performed... more
A Quantitative Histopathology study on rats' brainstem was used to analyze morphological alterations in the neurons and glial cells of rats that received inhaled tetrahydrocanabinol for 4, 8 and 12 weeks. Puffing of smoke was performed with the use of a Hamilton syringe delivering 100ml puffs at 20s intervals into the nose only manifold. Smoke was first pumped into a 500ml dilution chamber with the aid of a vacuum pump. The smoke was then displaced from the dilution chamber through the nose-only manifold at 300ml/min; the rats received inhaled THC at 5ml/sec for 5 minutes. After administration for varying durations a selective cell staining of the neurons and glial cells in the rat's pons, medulla and midbrain was carried out and used to study visible morphological changes in the tissues. Sections from the pons, medulla and midbrain were stained on slides for viewing under the microscope and photographed. Quantitative and qualitative histopathology study of photomicrographs was then used to analyze changes in the morphology and number of neurons. There was an increase in the ratio of neuronal cells comparing between the control and the treated groups with the pons (1:8), medulla (1:3) and the midbrain (1:5) which suggests neurogenesis and on further analysis of the slides show evidence of cell division. These findings can be of great importance in the study of neurodegenerative diseases and in understanding the influence of THC on brain.
Aluminum is a potent neurotoxin used in animal models of neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s disease (AD), in which oxidative stress mediates tissue pathogenesis in vivo. N-acetyl cysteine (NAC) is a glutathione precursor with... more
Aluminum is a potent neurotoxin used in animal models of neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s disease (AD), in which oxidative stress mediates tissue pathogenesis in vivo. N-acetyl cysteine (NAC) is a glutathione precursor with reported antioxidant and neuroprotective potentials. Recent therapy for combating AD is known to provide only symptomatic relief thus necessitating the discovery of new drugs and their mechanism of action. This study was aimed to demonstrate the in vivo neuroprotective effect of NAC against aluminum (Al 3+ )-induced neuro-degeneration in rats (a model for AD). Twenty- five (25) adult male Wistar rats used for this study were divided into 5 groups: Group A = Control, B = Aluminum chloride (200 mg/kg), C = 1000 mg/kg of NAC + Aluminum chloride (200 mg/kg), D = 1000 mg/kg of NAC, E = Aluminum chloride (200 mg/kg) was orally administered daily for 3 weeks and discontinued for one week. Frontal Cortex harvested for histological analysis using Haematoxylin a...
Aluminum is a potent neurotoxin used in animal models of neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s disease (AD), in which oxidative stress mediates tissue pathogenesis in vivo. N-acetyl cysteine (NAC) is a glutathione precursor with... more
Aluminum is a potent neurotoxin used in animal models of neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s disease (AD), in which oxidative stress mediates tissue pathogenesis in vivo. N-acetyl cysteine (NAC) is a glutathione precursor with reported antioxidant and neuroprotective potentials. Recent therapy for combating AD is known to provide only symptomatic relief thus necessitating the discovery of new drugs and their mechanism of action. This study was aimed to demonstrate the in vivo neuroprotective effect of NAC against aluminum (Al3+)-induced neuro-degeneration in rats (a model for AD). Twenty- five (25) adult male Wistar rats used for this study were divided into 5 groups: Group A = Control, B = Aluminum chloride (200 mg/kg), C = 1000 mg/kg of NAC + Aluminum chloride (200 mg/kg), D = 1000 mg/kg of NAC, E = Aluminum chloride (200 mg/kg) was orally administered daily for 3 weeks and discontinued for one week. Frontal Cortex harvested for histological analysis using Haematoxylin and...
The aim of the present study was to investigate the effects of pre- and post- administration of garlic extract on serum glucose and some biochemical parameters in alloxan-induced diabetic rats to show the preventive and ameliorating... more
The aim of the present study was to investigate the effects of pre- and post- administration of garlic extract on serum glucose and some biochemical parameters in alloxan-induced diabetic rats to show the preventive and ameliorating effects in alloxan induced-diabetic rats. Rats were divided into 4 groups; normal control rats, diabetic control rats, diabetic rats post-treated with garlic extract and rats pre-treated with garlic extract before induction. Garlic extract was administered orally for 2 weeks to post-treated rats and 3 weeks to pre-treated rats and they were compared with the normal and diabetic groups, respectively. Serum glucose was reduced significantly in both post-treated and pre-treated groups. The post-treatment with garlic extract reduced serum cholesterol, but pre-treatment with garlic extract produced significant change compare to the diabetic control. The serum creatinine and urea levels were significantly reduced in post-treated group and pre- treated group co...
Introduction: The model for screening antidepressant-like activity in pre-clinical drug studies include, rat forced swimming test (FST). The reports on N-acetylcysteine (NAC) as an antioxidant supplement in stress related disorder is well... more
Introduction: The model for screening antidepressant-like activity in pre-clinical drug studies include, rat forced swimming test (FST). The reports on N-acetylcysteine (NAC) as an antioxidant supplement in stress related disorder is well documented. This study was aimed at potential antidepressant mechanism of N- Acetyl Cysteine (NAC), a glutamate precursor on FST animal model for screening antidepressant drugs using fluoxetine, a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) as standard antidepressant drug. Methods: Thirty adult male Wistar rats used for this study were randomly divided into six groups each with five (n=5) rats. The control group (A) received 1 ml of normal saline daily, group B served as the FST model, group C received 200mg/kg/day of NAC, group D received 20mg/kg/day of fluoxetine, group E the FST model treated with 200mg/kg/day of NAC, and F is the FST model treated with 20mg/kg/day of fluoxetine. Drugs were given orally. The effects of NAC on brain weights, ...
