ABSTRACT
Objectives:
Little is known about the action of anabolic-androgenic steroids (AAS) on the human brain and, therefore, we decided to study the neuronal loss caused by use and abuse of AAS in mice.
Methods:
We used 60 Swiss mice, 30 males and 30 females, divided into three groups: 20 animals treated with Deposteron® (testosterone cypionate); another 20 animals were treated with Winstrol Depot® (stanozolol); the last 20 animals were treated with saline solution. All the animals were submitted to swimming for 15 minutes. After the treatment, the animals were euthanized by halothane inhalation (Halotano) method. The brains were removed and stored in 4% formal-dehyde solution for 24 hours. From each brain, homotypic samples were taken from the middle region of the brain in frontal cuts so that we could evaluate the areas established for this study.
Results:
Analyzes of the estimated cell profiles showed that there was a decrease in the number of profiles in the pallidal nucleus of the male animals treated with Winstrol Depot®.
Conclusion:
These results allow us to infer that inadequate and non-medical use of AAS can lead to cellular degeneration.
Keywords:
anabolic agents; neurons; basal ganglia; corpus striatum; globus pallidus
