Abstract
The study was carried out to investigate the effect of calcitonin (ECT), an analogue of natural eel calcitonin, on the mandibular condyles of rats with experimental osteoporosis induced by triethylene thio-phosphoramide (TEPA) by histology, scanning electron microscopy and computer aided microanalysis.
Wistar rats were divided evenly into 6 groups. The animals of the Normal Group were given distilled water once a day for 7 days, and those of TEPA Group were given 10mg of TEPA/kg by single injection. Those of TEPA·ECT5, TEPA·ECT10, TEPA·ECT20 and TEPA·ECT40, Groups were given 10mg of TEPA/kg by single injection and then received 5, 10, 20 and 40U of ECT/kg, respectively, once a day for 7 days.
1. In TEPA Group, the cells of the zone of differentiation and hypertrophy decreased in cell number and in thickness. By scanning electron microscopy, the matrix of cartilage and bone decreased. By computer aided microanalysis, the concentrations of Ca and P on the condyles decreased.
2. In TEPA·ECT5 and TEPA·ECT10, Groups, the zone of hypertrophy increased in cell number and in thickness as compared with those of TEPA Group. By scanning electron microscopy and computer aided microanalysis, the condyles showed changes similar to those in TEPA Group.
3. In TEPA·ECT20 and TEPA·ECT40, Groups, there were cell numbers and thicknesses in the zone of differentiation and hypertrophy as compared with those of TEPA, TEPA·ECT5, and TEPA·ECT10 Groups. By scanning electron microscopy, the matrixes of cartilage and bone were similar to those in the Normal Group. By computer aided microanalysis, in TEPA·ECT20 Group, the distribution of Ca and P were similar to those of the TEPA Group. In TEPA·ECT40, Group, however, the distributions of Ca and P showed those of between the Normal and TEPA Groups.
4. The results of the present study indicated that ECT inhibited the progress of disorders of rat mandibular condyles induced by TEPA and the effects of ECT were related to the doses of ECT.
