Vol 132, No 6 (2007)

The aim of this study was the analysis of cytoarchitectonics, neuronal organization and gender factor influence on neuronal dendroarchitectonics of amygdala posterior medial nucleus. The study was performed on 50 adult Wistar rats (25 male and 25 female) using Nissl and Golgi staining methods. The nucleus is shown to be formed by large neurons, which in silver-impreg-nated sections, had the characteristics of long-axon sparsely- and densely-branched neurons. In male rats, dendrites of long-axon sparsely-branched neurons had greater branching indexes, while those of long-axon densely-branched neurons were longer than in females.

The authors have monitored C6 glioma cell invasive growth, proliferation and transcriptional regulation after pretreatment with endothelin-1 and ERK1/2 specific inhibitor PD9S059. To explore proliferation of C6 glioma cells in different growth conditions, they were treated in vitro with endothelin-1 and implanted into the brain. In vitro studies have indicated that PD9S059 inhibited the proliferation of cultured C6 glioma cells and induced the activation of E2F1 and Мус-Max transcriptional factors. Endothelin-1 strongly increased C6 glioma cell prolif-eration. The model used in this study is experimental, but it may provide an insight into the specific behavior of in vitro cultured invasive cells.

The localization and morphometric features of efferent para-sympathetic neurons of the vagus dorsal motor nucleus and of the spinal sacral parasympathetic nucleus innervating the area of ileocaecal sphincter, ascending and transverse colon, were investigated. In urethane anaesthetized cats, the solution of horseradish peroxidase was injected under the serosa of the indicated areas of colon. In 48 hours animals were transcardially perfused with a fixative solution. Sections of the medulla oblongata and the sacral spinal cord were stained using Mezulam's technique (1978). It was shown that all the areas of the colon studied received parasympathetic innervation from the neurons of the ventrolateral part of the vagus dorsal motor nucleus, which were uniform according to their morphometric characteristics. The number of neurons in this group, sending their axons to the ileocaecal area, was greater than the number of neurons, innervating ascending colon. Second group of neurons, that was represented by smaller cells, was located in the same part of the nucleus and innervated transverse colon. Transverse colon had an additional parasympathetic supply from the neurons of the spinal sacral parasympathetic nucleus.

Myocardium structure and the pattern of cardiomyocyte cellular and intracellular changes were studied in rats follow-ing the exposure of the mother-fetus system to cadmium. Rats were intraperitoneally injected with cadmium sulfate during days 1-16 of pregnancy. Myocardium of the left ventricle was studied in pregnant females and fetuses on day 20 of gestation. Myocardium changes in cadmium-exposed animals included the reduction of cardiomyocyte and blood vessels relative volume in mother and fetus. The damage of the nuclear and nucleolar apparatus was detected, together with the signs of diffuse edema of cardiomyocyte myofibrils and dilatation of intercellular spaces within the myocardium. This changes in cadmium-exposed ani-mals are indicative of the development of regenerative-plastic myocardium insufficiency in the mother-fetus system.

In this study, some morphometric parameters of adrenals in outbred albino male rats were compared in the dynamics of gen-eral hypothermia at the ambient temperature of -18 °C. It was shown that in the course of general hypothermia, the increase of blood vessel relative volume in zona reticularis and in adrenal medulla was accompanied by the augmentation of nucleus size of adrenocorticocytes (mainly in zona fasciculata). Zona fascicu-lata reacted with a significant increase of blood vessel relative volume during the 1st hour of cold exposure, henceforth the parameters remained unchanged. Blood vessel relative volume in the left adrenal was found to significantly exceed that in the right adrenal. Jn zona glomerulosa of the left adrenal, blood vessel relative volume was reduced, while that one in zona glomeru-losa of the right adrenal remained unchanged during the whole experiment. Volume density of mitochondria in the endocrine cells of zona fasciculata was found to increase, this effect being more pronounced in the right adrenal as compared to the left one. In the cells of both glands, the volume density of lipid inclusions was gradually reduced, while the relative volume of nucleoli was variable and there were no statistically significant changes detected during the course of hypothermia.

The aim of this study was to analyze the response of cyto- and syncytiotrophoblast elements of fetal part of allantoic placenta to general acute hypoxia and to determine their morphologic characteristics, which provide the basis for structural changes in placenta and for the disturbances in placental blood flow. Female Wistar rats on day 16 of gestation were exposed to hypoxia (8 % oxygen concentration in the gas mixture) for 1 hr. Placenta was studied 1 and 3 days later. Short-term acute hypoxia during pregnancy was shown to induce an impairment of formation and maturation of the fetal part of placenta. In the labyrinth zone, apoptosis was enhanced and a significant number of hyperchro-matic nuclei appeared in cyto- and syncytiotrophoblast, which lead to the loss of some cells of cytotrophoblast and resulted in the retardation of its development and transformation into syncytiotrophoblast. One day following hypoxia, a stimulation of adaptive processes was evident as demonstrated by a dramatic rise of mitotic activity in the cytotrophoblast of the labyrinth zone of placental fetal part. However, a delay of the labyrinth zone development persisted till the end of pregnancy. Number and volume of fetal blood vessels were decreased as compared to those in control. A sharp decline of number and size of sinusoids containing maternal blood as well as a significant decrease of blood volume in the sinusoids, suggest a spasm of the uterine and placental vessels causing an impairment of utero-placental blood circulation and development of placental insufficiency

Cranioscopic and craniometric characteristics of posterior cranial fossa and correlations between them were studied using 127 skulls with different cranial shape (dolicho-, meso- and brachicraniums). It was found that most of the craniometric characteristics were independent on gender and shape of the skull, while each characteristic had some individual peculiari-ties. Endovideomonitoring was used to assess the optimality of suboccipital paramedial and retrosigmoid approaches to posterior cranial fossa using 20 heads of the corpses belonging to adult individuals. It was demonstrated that retrosigmoid approach was optimal for the accessibility of major anatomical structures of posterior cranial fossa.

This review of the literature presents the data on the history of development of the methods of staining of histological sections using the natural dye, hematoxylin. The content of solutions of the most commonly used alum hematoxylins is described. The information is given on the modern staining methods, in which alum and iron hematoxylins are used, as well as on the hema-toxylins, in which vanadium, lead, bismuth, uranium and other metals* salts are applied as mordants.