The effect of hyperhomocysteinemia on the patterns of electron microscopic changes in the liver of adult rats

Abstract

<jats:p>One of the important tasks of modern science is to find biochemical markers that would be able to reflect the risks of development and the nature of the course of various diseases, as well as to predict their possible consequences. In recent years, a significant number of compounds that can affect the biochemical profile of the organism have been identified. Homocysteine – a product of methionine metabolism, belongs to one of these markers, and the effects of its influece on the structure and function of various organs are being actively studied by modern researchers. The aim of the study is to find the patterns of electron microscopic changes in the liver structure of adult rats with hyperhomocysteinemia. The experimental study was performed on 22 white nonlinear mature male rats, which were divided into a control group and an experimental group. A model of persistent hyperhomocysteinemia was created by administering to rats of experimental group thiolactone homocysteine at a dose of 200 mg/kg body weight intragastrically for 60 days. The study of ultrastructural changes in the liver of rats was performed using an electron microscope PEM-125K. In adult rats with experimental hyperhomocysteinemia at the ultrastructural level, dystrophic and destructive changes in hepatocytes, endotheliocytes in the walls of sinusoids and Kupffer cells were found. These changes were more pronounced than in young rats with experimental hyperhomocysteinemia. Revealed structural changes in decompensation (depletion) of mitochondria – fewer number of cristae and enlightened matrix. In contrast to young rats, adult rats with hyperhomocysteinemia in the perisinusoidal spaces showed elongated Ito cells, a significant proportion of the cytoplasm is occupied by the Golgi complex and granular endoplasmic reticulum tanks, indicating protein synthesis for export. In Ito cells, the content of fat droplets, which are located on opposite poles of cells, is reduced. This morphological picture manifests the transformation of Ito cells into fibroblasts.</jats:p>