Structural changes in microcirculatory vessels and their surroundings in the primary visual cortex of 3- and 18-month-old rats with retinal photodamage and structural change correction

Morphofunctional changes in microvasculature play an important role in the nerve cell plasticity, the ability to change their functional state under the influence of various factors. The aim of the research was to study the morphology of the microvasculature vessels, surrounding neurons and glia cells in the primary visual cortex of 3- and 18-month-old rats in norm and under stress caused by high-intensity twenty-four-hour light exposure, as well as under correction. Materials and Methods. The experiments were carried out on 60 Wistar male rats, aged 3- and 18-months. The authors used light and electron microscopy, and morphometry to evaluate: capillary surface area and density, surface area of altered vessels (due to stasis, sludge of formed elements and thrombosis) and unchanged ones, as well as the morphology of the surrounding cells. The Kruskal-Wallis test was used for multiple comparisons within age groups, while Mann-Whitney test was used for pair comparison. Results. The authors observed different capillary reactions to light exposure in 3- and 18-month-old rats. It resulted in an increase of capillary density in 3-month-old rats and in a decrease of capillary density in 18-month-old rats (p function show_eabstract() { $('#eabstract1').hide(); $('#eabstract2').show(); $('#eabstract_expand').hide(); }