Antishock effects of corticosterone on dextran-induced shock in rats

To study the effects of glucocorticoid on the shock state, dextran-induced shock in rats was used as an experimental model system. The rats were divided into three groups, viz., control (group A), adrenalectomized (group B), and adrenalectomized corticosterone supplemented (2 mg/rat for 4 days; group C), and 5% dextran solution was given intravenously to each rat. In group B, remarkable increases in the histamine levels in both plasma and the paw cutaneous tissue, hemoconcentration, and intractable hypotension were observed. Most rats in group B died during the shock experiment without showing any recovery when the cannulas were inserted into the left carotid artery for the measurement of blood pressure. But in group C, most rats eventually survived and recovered to a normal state within 2 h, so that corticosterone clearly ameliorated the shock state of adrenalectomized rats by dextran administration. These results suggested that the ameliorating effects of corticosterone in the dextran-induced shock states are due to the acceleration of the rate of clearance of circulating chemical mediators that are represented by histamine and are due to the alteration of overall responsiveness of the animals to a complex array of factors that threaten the status of the animals, as represented by the amelioration of the vascular activity.