Efeitos do desoxinivalenol sobre o plexo mioentérico de ratos

Abstract

Deoxynivalenol (DON) is a mycotoxin produced mainly by the fungus specie Fusarium graminearum and that occurs worldwide as a grain contaminant. A wide economic and scientific interest has been given to DON research because this toxin occurs commonly as a contaminant of crops that are used as raw materials to produce foods and feedstuffs. No study has already assessed the effects of DON on the enteric nervous system. The enteric nervous system is the portion of the nervous system responsible by the intrinsic innervation of the gastrointestinal tract. This study aimed to assess the effects of a diet contaminated with increasing doses of DON on the myenteric neurons of growing rats. Fifty male Wistar rats with 21 days of life were used; the animals were fed for 42 days with experimental diets containing DON at levels of 0, 0.2, 0.75, 1.75 and 2.0 mg/kg. After the experimental period it was collected the ileum of six rats per experimental group and the myenteric neurons were stained with metilene blue. The addition of DON in the experimental diets did not change the morphological organization of the myenteric plexus. It was observed that the presence of DON in the diet at levels of 0.75, 1.75 and 2.0 mg/kg impaired the neuronal growth and at 0.2 mg/kg it caused the reduction in the density of the mynteric neurons in high protein synthesis activity. It is postulated the effects of the micotoxin are due to its protein synthesis inhibition and pro-apoptotic effects.