Study of corpus callosum in experimental hydrocephalic wistar rats

RESUMO

Purpose: Hydrocephalus causes countless cerebral damages, especially on the structures around the ventricles. Hydrocephalic children present deficiencies in the nonverbal skills more than in the verbal skills, and not always revertible with an early treatment. As the coreus callosum has an important role in the nonverbal acquisition it is possible that the injuries in this structure are responsible for the cognitive dysfunctions of these children. This present study tries to establish the alterations caused by hydrocephalus on the corpus callosum of developing Wistar rats, induced by intracisternal injection of kaolin. Methods: Seven, fourteen and twenty one days after the injection, the animais were killed, and the corpus callosum was dissected and prepared for the study of the axonal fibers. Results and Conclusion: The seven-day old rats in hydrocephalus development presented a delay in myelination in relation to the control rats. With the fourteen-day old rats in hydrocephalus development the coreus callosum showed a recovery of myelin, but with the twenty one-day old rats in hydrocephalus development the axonal fibers were damaged and reduced in number.