Methimazole slows hepatocyte streaming in rats

Hepatocytes are hypothesized to continually stream from the portal tract to the terminal hepatic vein. By this model, when a cell divides, one of its progeny replaces the dividing ancestor and the other is displaced into a more remote location. The present experiment aims to demonstrate that hypothy...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Digestive diseases and sciences 1997-07, Vol.42 (7), p.1433-1437
Main Authors: OREN, R, ZAJICEK, G, MAARAVI, Y, KENET, G, KARMELY, F, HUBERT, A, RAANANI, P, ARBER, N
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Animals
Antithyroid Agents - pharmacology
Biological and medical sciences
Cell Division - drug effects
General pharmacology
Hypothyroidism - chemically induced
Hypothyroidism - physiopathology
Liver - cytology
Liver - drug effects
Male
Medical sciences
Methimazole - pharmacology
Pharmacokinetics. Pharmacogenetics. Drug-receptor interactions
Pharmacology. Drug treatments
Rats
Thyrotropin - blood
Time Factors
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Summary:Hepatocytes are hypothesized to continually stream from the portal tract to the terminal hepatic vein. By this model, when a cell divides, one of its progeny replaces the dividing ancestor and the other is displaced into a more remote location. The present experiment aims to demonstrate that hypothyroidism affects liver cell turnover. Thirty male adult rats were divided into two groups. One received methimazole for two weeks and the other served as control. Each rat was injected intraperitoneally with 18.5 KBq [3H]thymidine/g body weight. Rats were killed after 1 hr and two and four weeks. Autoradiography was done. The distance of the labeled cells from the portal tract was measured. The mean TSH levels of the methimazole-treated group and controls were 1.45 and 0.25 mM/liter, respectively (P < 0.01). Hepatocyte streaming was lower in hypothyroid (1.8 microns/day) than in untreated rats (2.5 microns/day) (P < 0.01). The respective labeling indices 1 hr after labeling were 0.9% and 1.24% (P < 0.05). We conclude that hypothyroidism diminishes hepatocyte and littoral cell turnover and slows down their streaming.
ISSN:0163-2116
1573-2568
DOI:10.1023/A:1018802407565