Anticancer drug vinblastine sulphate induces transient morphological changes on the olfactory mucosa of the rabbit
Date
2012Author
Kavoi, BM
Makanya, AN
Kiama, SG
Type
ArticleLanguage
enMetadata
Show full item recordAbstract
Vinblastine sulphate (VBS) is an anticancer drug that acts by disrupting microtubule
dynamics of highly mitotic tissue cells. The consequences of VBS on the
olfactory mucosa (OM), a tissue with high mitotic numbers, are not clearly
understood. We used qualitative and quantitative methods to determine the
structural changes that may be produced on the rabbit OM by VBS. Following
a single dose (0.31 mg/kg) of this drug, the structure of the mucosa was greatly
altered on the first 3–5 days. The alteration was characterized by disarrangement
of the normal layering of nuclei of the epithelia, degeneration of axonal
bundles, occurrence of blood vessels within the bundles, localized death of cells
of Bowman’s glands and glandular degeneration. Surprisingly on or after day 7
and progressively to day 15 post-exposure, the OM was observed to regenerate
and acquire normal morphology, and the vessels disappeared from the bundles.
Relative to control values, bundle diameters, olfactory cell densities and cilia
numbers decreased to as low as 53.1, 75.2 and 71.4%, respectively, on day 5.
Volume density for the bundles, which was 28.6% in controls, decreased to a
lowest value of 16.8% on day 5. In contrast, the volume density for the blood
vessels was significantly lower in controls (19.9%) than in treated animals at
day 2 (25.8%), day 3 (34.3%) and day 5 (31.5%). These findings suggest that
the changes induced on the rabbit OM by VBS are transient and that regenerative
recovery leads to the restoration of the normal structure of the mucosa
Publisher
Department of Veterinary Anatomy & Physiology, University of Nairob Institute of Anatomy, University of Bern, Balzerstrasse