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Reduction of Carbon Tetrachloride-Induced Hepatotoxic Effects by Oral Administration of Betaine in Male Han-Wistar Rats: A Morphometric Histological Study

Department of Basic Veterinary Sciences: Veterinary Pathology (MJ, TR, AS) and Veterinary Anatomy (LAL), University of Helsinki, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Helsinki, Finland

Eighty-five male Han-Wistar rats were arranged into three groups: CCl₄-exposed rats, CCl₄ + betaine–exposed rats, and control rats. To see the effect of betaine alone, five rats of the control and of the CCl₄ + betaine groups were sacrificed after 7 days, before exposure to CCl₄. After that, two of the groups (the CCl₄ and CCl₄ + betaine groups) were exposed to CCl₄ (1 ml/kg per day subcutaneously [SC] for 4 consecutive days), and one of the groups (control group) was given olive oil (1 ml/kg per day SC for 4 consecutive days). At the start of the study (day 0), day 1, day 2, day 3, day 4, and 3 days after the last CCl₄ and olive oil injections (day 7), samples of five rats per group were sacrificed, and the livers were taken for chemical analyses and histological examination. Oral betaine, after the acclimation period of a week, increased the number of mitochondria but not mitochondria size (day 0), compared with the case in control rats. Exposure to CCl₄ resulted in centrilobular hepatic steatosis, and the administration of betaine significantly reduced this. Morphometric analyses also revealed that the addition of betaine increased the volume density of rough endoplasmic reticulum (RER) in the perinuclear areas of liver cell cytoplasm (day 7). Additionally, the administration of betaine prevented the reduction of Golgi complexes and mitochondrial figures in the cytoplasm observed after the exposures to CCI₄. Also, the volume density of mitochondria was smallest in the CCI₄-group, but the difference was not statistically significant. The results indicate that oral betaine either improves recovery or reduces the toxic effects of CCl₄ on cell organelles in liver cells of male Han-Wistar rats.

Key words: Betaine; carbon tetrachloride; fatty liver; morphometric histological study, rats.

Request reprints from Dr. Matti Junnila, Harvakkalantie 7D, FIN-0500, Lohja (Finland). E-mail: matti.junnila{at}pp.inet.fi.

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