INTRODUCTION: Animal models for Parkinson's disease (PD) which mimetize dopaminergic degeneration of nervous cells have been developed to study the pathology of this disease and to analyze the efficiency of new therapies. One of the cardinal signs of PD have muscle stiffness, studies suggest that intrinsic changes in mechanical properties of muscle may be responsible for the increase of this amendment tonic. OBJECTIVE: To analyze the morphology and histomorphometry of soleus muscle of rats PD-induced by 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropiridine (MPTP). MATERIALS AND METHODS: We used 24 male Wistar rats, with the age of 13 weeks and 279 ± 13 g weight, divided into four groups: 1- control-control (n = 6): sham treated with benserazidasalina; 2 - control-L-DOPA (n = 6): sham treated with benserazida + L-DOPA; 3 - MPTP-control (n = 6): injury in substantia nigra (SNc) by MPTP treated with benserazidasalina; 4 - MPTP-L-DOPA (n = 6): CNS injury by MPTP treated with benserazida + L-DOPA. These animals were euthanized 35 days after the experimental procedures. It was analyzed: body weight, muscle weight, General muscle morphology with light microscopy and measurement of the cross-sectional area of muscle fibers. Comparisons between initial and final body weight were developed with the paired T-test. The Tukey post-hoc ANOVA was used for comparisons between groups, being considered significant p ≤ 0.05. RESULTS: No statistically significant differences were found in the analyzed variables. CONCLUSION: The data analyzed do not exclude the possibility of occurrence of changes in the interior of these cells, in the types of muscle fibers or long term.
Muscle rigidity; Skeletal muscle; Parkinson Disease; 1-Methyl-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine
