Changes in the Histamine Status of the Internal Organs of Laboratory Animals Depending on the Silicon Concentration in Drinking Water

Abstract

The results of a study of the histamine status of the internal organs of Djungarian hamsters when silicon was taken with drinking water are presented. The aim of the study was to assess the histamine status of the liver, spleen and testicles of Djungarian hamsters when silicon was ingested with drinking water for three months at various concentrations. Material and methods. The hamsters were kept in the vivarium on a standard diet with free access to drinking water for three months. Hamsters of the control group (n = 3) received bottled drinking water, hamsters of the experimental groups received the same bottled water with the addition of sodium metasilicate 9-hydrate at a concentration of 10 mg/l in terms of silicon (the first experimental group, n = 3) and 20 mg/l in terms of silicon (the second experimental group, n = 3). To detect and quantify histamine in organs and tissues in cryostat sections of the liver, spleen and testicles, the fluorescent-histochemical Cross method was used. A general blood test and a blood test for glucose and cholesterol were also performed. Results and their discussion. A general blood test of hamsters that received drinking water with different concentrations of silicon did not reflect the effect of microelement intaked into the organism, while, depending on the concentration of silicon in water, the average blood glucose level tended to increase, and the cholesterol level tended to decrease. The obtained results do not contradict our previous studies in that direction. It has been shown that the concentration of silicon in drinking water from 10 mg/l hardly noticeably affects the histamine status of such organs as the liver, spleen and testes: only the intensity of histamine luminescence in macrophages of the red pulp increases statistically significantly. When silicon enters the body with drinking water at a concentration of 20 mg/l, the histamine status of organs changes more noticeably, the cells surrounding the central veins and the interstitial histamine-containing testes cells are “involved” into the reaction, which is visually reflected in the luminescent morphology of the investigated organs. Conclusions. The intake of silicon at a concentration of 10 mg/l and 20 mg/l for three months affects the histamine status of the liver, spleen and testes of Djungarian hamsters, while the indicators of the general blood test do not change.