title: Urinary bladder dysfunction in the BB/W diabetic rat: effect of ganglioside treatment on functional and structural alterations.
abstract: Urinary bladder dysfunction in the diabetic BB/W rat is characterized by infrequent irregular contractions of high amplitude. Initially these occur in the absence of detectable neuroanatomical lesions of sensory afferent and parasympathetic fibers of the pelvic nerve, which constitute the micturition reflex arc. Structural lesions consisting of progressive axonal atrophy of myelinated and unmyelinated fibers become detectable only after 4 months of diabetes. In the current study we evaluated the effect of ganglioside treatment (10 mg./kg. body weight) for one month. This drug regimen was initiated at 4 months of diabetes, when functional bladder abnormalities were well established, whereas structural lesions were yet to appear. Animals examined 1 or 3 months after termination of the one-month treatment protocol showed sustained normalization of the characteristic functional abnormalities, accompanied by prevention of the neuroanatomical lesions of sensory afferent and parasympathetic efferent myelinated fibers in the pelvic nerve. These data suggest that ganglioside treatment may be beneficial in delaying the progression of diabetic autonomic neuropathy in this experimental animal model.
authors.affiliation: FIDIA Research Laboratories, Abano Terme (PD), Italy.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Paro
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Prashar
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Prosdocimi
authors.forename: P V
authors.initials: PV
authors.lastname: Cherian
authors.forename: M G
authors.initials: MG
authors.lastname: Fiori
authors.forename: A A
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: Sima
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D003922:Diabetes Mellitus, Type 1 / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000503:physiopathology*; D003929:Diabetic Neuropathies / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology*; D005260:Female; D005732:Gangliosides / Q000494:pharmacology / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D008297:Male; D009119:Muscle Contraction / Q000187:drug effects; D009130:Muscle, Smooth / Q000187:drug effects / Q000503:physiopathology; D009412:Nerve Fibers / Q000187:drug effects / Q000473:pathology; D051381:Rats; D011913:Rats, Inbred BB; D001743:Urinary Bladder / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000503:physiopathology*; D001750:Urinary Bladder, Neurogenic / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000503:physiopathology*
chemical_list: D005732:Gangliosides