Morphological and morphometric investigation of cardiac lesions after chronic administration of methamphetamine in rats.
The effects of chronic administration of methamphetamine on myocardium were morphologically and morphometrically studied in experimental models. Methamphetamine (1 mg/kg/day) was subcutaneously injected to five-week-old male Wistar Kyoto rats (WKY) for 8 weeks. Age- and sex-matched WKY served as controls. In light microscopy, scattered cytomyolysis, vacuolization, contraction bands and disarray of myofibers were prominent in methamphetamine-treated group; the electron microscopy showed degenerated mitochondria with disrupted cristae, myofibrillar hypercontraction and dissolution. Morphometric analysis was carried out using electron photographs and an image analyzer. The sizes of mitochondria and the number of mitochondria per unit area (100 microns2) in methamphetamine-treated group were significantly smaller than in the controls. No statistically significant difference was found regarding the percentage of myofibrillar area in cytoplasm between methamphetamine-treated and control groups. These findings show that chronic administration of methamphetamine can cause serious cardiac lesions and decrease in mitochondrial function.
He
S Y
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Department of Forensic Medicine, Saga Medical School, Japan.
Matoba
R
R
Sodesaki
K
K
Fujitani
N
N
Ito
Y
Y
D000818:Animals; D006321:Heart / Q000187:drug effects*; D008297:Male; D008694:Methamphetamine / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000633:toxicity*; D008854:Microscopy, Electron; D008929:Mitochondria, Heart / Q000187:drug effects; D009206:Myocardium / Q000648:ultrastructure*; D051381:Rats; D017208:Rats, Wistar
D008694:Methamphetamine