DIAGNÓSTICO HISTOPATOLÓGICO DE CRISTALES DE HEMOGLOBINA EN PULMONES DE RATAS WISTAR/CMEDC

Abstract

Laboratory animals, such as mice and rats, have long been used as models to improve our understanding of several diseases and the development of treatments. The normal wear and tear of animal life causes histologic changes in many organs and those are called background lesions. Many animal models are recognized to have background lesions for which distinction from xenobiotic-induced injury may be challenging. Hemoglobin crystals are background lesions occasionally seen in rats, because rat hemoglobin crystallizes more readily than does hemoglobin in other species. We report herein three cases of hemoglobin crystals found in lung from untreated Wistar/Cmedc rats from Center for Comparative Medicine (CMC). Diagnosis was confirmed by histopathology. Hemoglobin crystals were found typically in the alveolar extracellular space, they were rectangular and red, and usually spatially associated with extravasated erythrocytes. The aim of recognition of expected background lesions in strains of rats is maximize the reliability and reproducibility of results to translational research in preclinical studies. This report provides a valuable information and present the hemoglobin crystals like a background lesions found in lungs of Wistar/Cmedc rats from CMC.