title: Short- and long-term effects of zinc treatment on lacrimal gland histopathology and tear functions tests in radioiodine-administered rats.
abstract: To investigate the short-term (1 week) and long-term (8 weeks) protective effects of zinc administration on radioiodine (RAI)-induced lacrimal gland damage of rats.
  A total of 40 rats were divided into two groups: an RAI group (n=20), which was administrated a single dose of 3 mCi of 131I and 1 mL physiologic saline for 7 days by gastric gavage, and a zinc group (n=20), which received a single dose of 3 mCi of 131I and 1 mL of physiologic saline containing zinc sulfate at a concentration of 10 mg/kg concentration for 7 days by gastric gavage. All rats underwent tear function tests before and 1 week after RAI administration. About 1 week after irradiation, half of the animals in each group were sacrificed and the extraorbital lacrimal glands were removed for histopathological examination. The remaining animals of the groups underwent the same procedures at 8 weeks after irradiation.
  In the RAI and zinc groups, the mean tear production was 3.75 ± 1.55 and 3.65 ± 1.53 mm at baseline, 2.10 ± 1.07 and 3.30 ± 1.34 mm at week 1 (p=0.004), and 3.22 ± 1.48 and 3.50 ± 1.78 mm at week 8, respectively; further, the mean corneal fluorescein staining scores were 4.65 ± 2.16 and 4.80 ± 2.21 points at baseline, 7.85 ± 1.90 and 5.45 ± 2.06 points at week 1 (p=0.001), and 5.44 ± 2.13 and 4.90 ± 2.08 at week 8, respectively. The histopathological changes in rat lacrimal glands at weeks 1 and 8 were consistent with the tear function test results.
  Zinc treatment seems to be protective against RAI-induced lacrimal gland damage of rats, particularly in the acute period.
authors.affiliation: Department of Ophthalmology, Ankara Training and Research Hospital, Ankara, Turkey.
authors.forename: Firdevs
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Ornek
authors.affiliation: Department of Ophthalmology, Zekai Tahir Burak Women's Health Training and Research Hospital, Ankara, Turkey.
authors.forename: Damla Erginturk
authors.initials: DE
authors.lastname: Acar
authors.affiliation: Department of Ophthalmology, Faculty of Medicine, Hacettepe University, Ankara, Turkey.
authors.forename: Ugur
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Acar
authors.affiliation: Department of Ophthalmology, Zekai Tahir Burak Women's Health Training and Research Hospital, Ankara, Turkey.
authors.forename: Ozdemir
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Ozdemir
authors.affiliation: Department of Nuclear Medicine, Necip Fazil City Hospital, Kahramanmaras, Turkey.
authors.forename: Hasan Ikbal
authors.initials: HI
authors.lastname: Atilgan
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Harran University, Sanliurfa, Turkey.
authors.forename: Nihat
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Yumusak
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Aksaray University, Aksaray, Turkey.
authors.forename: Basak Boztok
authors.initials: BB
authors.lastname: Ozgermen
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000975:Antioxidants / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D005260:Female; D019793:Fluorescein; D007457:Iodine Radioisotopes / Q000009:adverse effects*; D007765:Lacrimal Apparatus / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000473:pathology / Q000528:radiation effects*; D011833:Radiation Injuries, Experimental / Q000517:prevention & control*; D011837:Radiation-Protective Agents / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D051381:Rats; D017208:Rats, Wistar; D013666:Tears / Q000502:physiology*; D019287:Zinc Sulfate / Q000008:administration & dosage*
chemical_list: D000975:Antioxidants; D007457:Iodine Radioisotopes; D011837:Radiation-Protective Agents; D019287:Zinc Sulfate; D019793:Fluorescein