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Open Life Sciences

formerly Central European Journal of Biology

Editor-in-Chief: Ratajczak, Mariusz

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IMPACT FACTOR 2016 (Open Life Sciences): 0.448

CiteScore 2017: 0.88

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2391-5412
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Volume 7, Issue 1

Issues

Volume 10 (2015)

Atrazine-induced degranulation of thyroid mast cells in peripubertal and adult rats

Vesna Rajkovic / Renata Kovac / Ivana Koledin / Milica Matavulj
Published Online: 2011-12-25 | DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/s11535-011-0100-2

Abstract

Atrazine is a commonly used pesticide in the US and the non-EU countries. It is classified as an endocrine-disrupting chemical and is well-known for its reproductive toxicity in mammals and lower vertebrates. The study on atrazine effects on thyroid mast cells was performed on juvenile/peripubertal and adult male Wistar rats orally gavaged with atrazine at doses of 50 mg/kg of body weight (bw) or 200 mg/kg bw. In order to visualize the mast cell population within the thyroid gland, a histochemical staining method of toluidine blue was used. The results of the histological evaluation demonstrated a prominent increase in mast cell degranulation in both age groups and at both atrazine doses. According to the stereological analysis, a statistically significant decrease in the mast cell volume density in the young rats exposed to a higher dose of atrazine was found when compared to the corresponding control. The numerical density of mast cells significantly decreased in a higher-dose atrazine treated adults in comparison to the control. The obtained data suggest that atrazine-affected mast cells would probably have a consequent influence on thyroid follicular cells and/or thyroid microvasculature via paracrine action of released mediators, but might also be involved in already suggested thyroid cancerogenesis.

Keywords: Mast cell; Thyroid gland; Atrazine; Stereology

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About the article

Published Online: 2011-12-25

Published in Print: 2012-02-01


Citation Information: Open Life Sciences, Volume 7, Issue 1, Pages 25–32, ISSN (Online) 2391-5412, DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/s11535-011-0100-2.

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© 2011 Versita Warsaw. This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License. BY-NC-ND 3.0

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