Abstract
ObjectiveTo analyze and to quantify morphological acinar postmortem changes in rat sublingual glands (SLG).Material and MethodsFifty rats were divided into two groups of 25 animals each. Group I was used for morphological and morphometric evaluations and group II for the determination of gland density and processed gland volume. Acinar autolytic changes were studied at 0 (control group), 3, 6, 12 and 24 h postmortem periods. The morphometric analysis of the volume density (Vv) and total volume (VT) of intact (ia) and autolyzed (aa) acini was performed under light microscopy using a Zeiss II integration grid with 100 symmetrically distributed points.ResultsMorphologically, temporal progressive nuclear alterations and gradual loss of the structural architecture of acinar cells were found. Regarding quantitative results, both the Vvaa and the Vvia showed statistically significant differences among all postmortem periods (p<0.05). Vvaa increased from 0.42% at 0 h to 75.84% at 24 h postmortem and Vvia decreased from 71.16% to 0% over the same period. For VTaa and VTia, no statistically significant differences occurred between 12-24 h and 0-3 h (p>0.05), respectively. Vtaa increased from 0.18 mm3 at 0 h to 38.17 mm3 at 12 h, while Vtia showed a decrease from 33.47 mm3 to 0 mm3 between 3-24 h postmortem. Data concerning VTaa were adjusted by twovariable linear regression, obtaining the equation: y=-3.54 + 3.38x (r2=0.90). The VTaa growth rate calculated by this equation was 3.38 mm3/h between 0-12 h.ConclusionAcinar autolysis on rat SLG demonstrated the most significant signs during the first 6 h postmortem and was widely spread through the gland at 12 h.
Highlights
Postmortem autolytic changes have been described in heart1,5,8,12,15, temporal bones9, pancreas10,14,17, kidneys4,17, liver17, skeletal muscle17, blood vessels11, blood cells13 and sweat glands3
Rat glands at 3 h postmortem presented initial signs of acini destruction
Autolytic changes have been investigated by forensic pathologists, because they may assist in determining the time of death, especially in the ¿UVW IHZ K SRVWPRUWHP3,17
Summary
Postmortem autolytic changes have been described in heart, temporal bones, pancreas, kidneys, liver, skeletal muscle, blood vessels, blood cells and sweat glands. Clumping and margination of the nuclear chromatin, pyknotic nuclei, breakdown of nuclear membranes, swelling or lysis of cells and a progressive reduction in cell staining quality were some of the events reported in the literature. In previous investigations on human sublingual glands DQ HYHQWXDO SKHQRPHQRQ ZDV LGHQWL¿HG DV DXWRO\VLV EXW WKH H[DFW PHDQLQJ RI WKH ¿QGLQJ was not elucidated. A lack of information exists concerning postmortem autolytic changes in the mucous and mixed acini of salivary glands, mainly to distinguish these from pathological causes before death or others artifacts. The purpose of this study was to analyze and quantify morphological acinar postmortem changes in a UDW VXEOLQJXDO JODQG PRGHO UDW 6/* YHUL¿HG DW different time intervals after death
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