[Changes in the dendrites in chronic morphine poisoning]

Ultrastructure of dendrites has been studed in lineal rats injected with hydrochloride morphine, 30 mg/kg for 20-40 days or in increasing doses from 30 up to 144 mg/kg for 40 days. The dendritic changes are manifested as focal clearance in them and decreasing number of microtubules. In the altered dendrites, swelled crest-deprived mitochondria and a small amount of micrograined material appear. In advanced stages of the dendritic changes, membranous inclusions and myelin-like bodies are revealed, often in combination with dendritic varicosities. The dendritic changes can serve as a structural prerequisite for certain disorders in receptory function of the neural cells.