Document type
ArticleVersion
Published versionPublication date
Publication license
Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/2445/104338
Chronic hypoxia induced ultrastructural changes in the rat adrenal zona glomerulosa
Journal Title
Director/Tutor
Additional contribution
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Abstract
The adrenal cortex plays an important role in adaptation to various forms of stress, including hypoxia. While physiological changes in the aldosterone metabolism during hypoxia have been extensively described, few studies have focused on the morphological changes in the adrenal glands under chronic hypoxia. We studied the ultrastructure of the zona glomerulosa of 6-month-old Wistar rats exposed to chronic normobaric hypoxia. Animals were divided into two groups: control (n=12) and hypoxic (n=12). In this latter group, the animals were kept at 7% O2 concentration after a gradual adaptation (21, 15, 12, 10, 8, 7 vol% O2 ). The duration of the study was 112 days. In comparison with normoxic rats, body weight and adrenal gland weight of hypoxic animals was significantly reduced by 18.5% (p=0.006) and 14.7% (p=0.001) respectively. The thickness of the zona glomerulosa decreased due to atrophy of cells. The main ultrastructural changes observed were: 1) a decrease in, or complete limination of, lipid droplet content; 2) a marked increase in lysosome number; and 3) the presence of giant mitochondria. Our findings show that rats fail to adapt to severe chronic hypoxia. The ultrastructural changes in the zona glomerulosa found in the present study could reflect changes in the aldosterone pathway.
Related resource
Citation
Citation
LORENTE, M., et al. Chronic hypoxia induced ultrastructural changes in the rat adrenal zona glomerulosa. Histology and Histopathology. 2002. Vol. 17, num. 1, pags. 185-190. ISSN 0213-3911. [consulted: 13 of October of 2026]. Available at: https://hdl.handle.net/2445/104338