Ultrastructural study on the acini of the submandibular gland of adult experimentally diabetic male albino rat

ABSTRACT

The fine structure of the submandibular gland of male adult albino rats has been examined in control rats and in rats subjected to induced by alloxan for one, two and four months. All diabetic rats developed persistent hyperglycemia, lost weight, had atrophied testes and some of them became cachectic. Variable ultrastructural changes were evident in the affected acinar components even in early stages of diabetes induction of the experiment. It became more progressive after four months. The nuclei became irregular, electron dense and indented. There was a decrease in the amount of rough endoplasmic reticulum which appeared as fragmented strands. Accumulation of protein secretory material within the cytoplasm was followed by degenerative changes resulting in cell death. The presence of lipid droplets of variable sizes in basal cytoplasm was also noticed