Prompt recovery of damaged adrenal medullae induced by salinomycin

The morphologic changes in the adrenal medullae of rats treated with an ionophore antibiotic, salinomycin, are described. Male rats of approximately 7 wk of age were treated orally with a single dose of salinomycin at 80 mg/kg body weight. Following this treatment, the adrenal glands were examined, using immunohistochemistry, for neurofilament, laminin, fibronectin, and S-100 protein; the glands were also examined using transmission electron microscopy. One hour after the treatment, a karyopyknosis was observed in the clusters of affected chromaffin cells in which the neurofilament, laminin, and fibronectin were present. The lesions became progressively conspicuous between hours 5 and 10. Ultimately, the outcome was cell lysis. Five hours after salinomycin treatment, unaffected chromaffin cells strongly stained to tyrosine hydroxylase. At 10 hr, new chromaffin cells, which were irregular in shape with electron-dense cytoplasm (dark cell), that were strongly stained for tyrosine hydroxylase appeared at the basement membrane site of the necrotic clusters, and these cells contained very few immature catecholamine granules of less than 80 nm. At 17 hr, the catecholamine granules increased in number and size to about 200 nm. The newly formed chromaffin cells grew within the clusters to fill in the medulla by 24 hr, and cytoplasmic granules progressively increased in number and size. The interstitial tissue was seen to be edematous at 5 hr. New capillaries were found in the adrenal medullae of both control and salinomycin-treated rats. The protruding chromaffin cells (protruding cells), which we previously described in normal rats, were also observed in salinomycin-treated rats, which suggests that holocrine secretion is performed in the adrenal medullae. The results indicated that the rat adrenal medullae have the ability to make a rapid recovery after an insult by salinomycin.