DAMAGE TO THE ADRENAL GLANDS IN THE SIMULATION OF SUICIDE POISONING IN AN EXPERIMENT

Relevance. Suicidal poisonings occupy a special place among chemical poisonings, which occurs against the background of a previous psychotraumatic situation. To date, it has not been clarified how stress conditions affect the nature of acute poisoning, and how the adrenal glands react to chemical aggression. There are no studies devoted to the study of morpho-functional changes of the adrenal glands in suicides caused by various chemicals. Understanding the mechanisms of toxic effects can have significant clinical and experimental implications for understanding adaptive processes in the body.

The aim of the work is to study changes in the structure of the adrenal glands of rats during experimental modeling of suicidal poisoning.

Materials and methods. The experiment was performed on 135 mongrel male rats. Acetic acid poisoning was modeled on two groups of animals. The first group was previously subjected to acute (6-hour) stress, the second – to chronic (14-day) stress. A 30 % solution of acetic acid was used as a toxicant, which was administered once in an amount of 0.5 ml. The observation period ranged from 1 to 15 days. The stress level and morphofunctional state of the adrenal glands were determined by the content of corticosterone, prolactin, hydroperoxides and lipids. The weight of the gland, the width of the cortical substance and its zones, the degree of damage and the change in the structure of the cortical substance were determined. The statistical significance of the differences between the studied groups was assessed using the nonparametric Mann–Whitney test.

Results. The premorbid state significantly changed the adrenal glands response to chemical aggression. Acute stress causes an increase in the adrenal glands mass; it lowers the reserves of plastic material in corticocytes. At the same time, there is an increase in the content of corticosterone and prolactin in blood plasma. Acetic acid poisoning after 14 days of stress causes severe damage to the adrenal cortex.

Conclusion. The depth of damage to the adrenal glands in suicidal poisoning is directly associated with premorbid stress. The greatest structural changes in the adrenal cortex are observed when poisoning is combined with chronic premorbid stress. Acute premorbid stress preceding suicidal poisoning increases the body's resistance to the toxicant.

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