Morphometric analysis of the adrenal compartments exposed to sustained delivery of androgens

The role of reproductive and adrenal steroid hormones on the structural and functional capacity of adrenal tissue has not been well investigated. The objective of this investigation was to morphometrically evaluate the effect of testosterone (T), dihydrotestosterone (DHT), and androstenedione (AED) given in a sustained manner, by tricalcium phosphate lysine (TCPL) ceramic capsules, on the adrenals of adult male rats. Sixteen adult male rats were randomly divided into four equal groups. Groups II, III, and I were implanted with TCPL capsules loaded with AED, T, and DHT, respectively. Group IV animals were not implanted, and thus served as the control group. At the end of ninety days post-implantation, the animals were euthanized using standard aseptic surgical techniques. The adrenal glands were harvested and stored in 10% formalin. The tissues were processed, embedded, sectioned and stained with H & E using standard laboratory procedure. Random sections of control and experimental tissues were utilized for morphometric analysis by using Image Pro digital analysis techniques. Data collected were analyzed by means of ANOVA (p < 0.05). Results of this study revealed. (1) There was an increase in the total areas of T treated animals in comparison to the control and other experimental groups, (2) the total lengths of each hormonally treated tissue showed an increase in size of DHT treated tissue verses control, but differences of T and AED compared with control remained insignificant, (3) upon analysis of the zona glomerulosa (Z1) and zona fasciculata (Z2) the data demonstrated a significant increase in animals treated with DHT and AED in comparison to control and T treated animals, (4) finally, statistical analysis performed on measurements of the zona reticularies (Z3) indicated notable increases only in the AED exposed animals. The changes in size of the various tissues may be warranted due to reactions of the steroid hormones with different surface receptors in different layers. However, further investigations are needed, especially longer duration of treatment, to fully hypothesize the exact mechanisms of these hormones on the adrenal glands.