OPERATIONAL TRAUMA AND DERMAL MAST CELLS
Abstract
Aim - Το investigate changes in dermal mast cell numbers and degranulation induced by a skin wound. Methods - Seventy (70) Balb/c albino mice were divided into batches of 10, each batch forming an experimental group. After general anaesthesia induced with aether, a skin wound was performed on the right flank of the mice. The wound bed was removed and fixed in 10% formal saline, processed routinely to paraffin wax and studied at 0, 1/2, 1, 2, 4, 8, 16, 24, 48 and 72 hrs, postoperatively. An intact skin area on the left flank was also removed as a control. The tissues were cut at 5 μm and stained with toluidine blue. Results - The mean number of mast cells gradually started decreasing, after making the wound, to reach its lowest value after 16 hrs, when it started increasing to the end of the experiments (72 hrs postoperatively). In the same area, the percentage of degranulating mast cells showed the opposite trend: it started rising after the operational trauma, increased gradually to reach its highest value after 16 hrs and then began falling tο reach its lowest value at 72 hrs. Both the mean number and the percentage of degranulating mast cells of the intact dermis remained unchanged throughout the experiment. Conclusions - The reduction in the total number of mast cells after dermal injury, in conjunction with the increase in the percentage of degranulated mast cells in the area, is thought to be related in the process of wound healing.References
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