Avaliação histopatológica a nível glomerular de camundongos esquistossomóticos submetidos a ingestão de dieta hipercolesterolêmica

Abstract

Schistosomiasis associated with obesity is a serious public health problem in Brazil, affecting approximately 2.5 million people in the country and around 240 million worldwide. The overlap of areas where schistosomiasis is endemic with regions where dietary habits are focused on a high-calorie intake suggests a possible natural association between the two factors, but further studies are needed to better understand this relationship between parasite, host, and diet. Based on this, the aim of this study was to better understand the pathological process of schistosomiasis associated with a high-cholesterol diet and its impact on renal tissues. Histopathological evaluations of renal glomeruli were conducted in female Swiss Webster mice with experimental acute schistosomiasis, divided into four experimental groups: control group with a standard diet (CDP), infected group without a diet (IDP), control group with a high-cholesterol diet (CDH), and infected group with a high-cholesterol diet (IDH). Additionally, biochemical analyses (lipidogram), peritoneal lavage analyses to determine the cytokine profile, morphometric analyses, histopathological analyses, analyses of glomerular capillaries, quantification of collagen around renal cortex vessels, and determination of adiposity index were performed. After collecting the data, the results were subjected to statistical analysis using GraphPad Prism 8 software. Tests with a p-value<0.05 were considered statistically significant. Our results revealed alterations in body weight, adiposity index, lipidogram, and blood glucose levels influenced by both diet and infection, as well as a distinct pattern in the immunological profile of cytokines produced by peritoneal cells. The histopathological data showed disruption of renal tissue, with the emergence of areas of hyperemia in the renal cortex, as well as structural modifications in the glomeruli, such as atrophy, hypertrophy, expansion of the extracellular matrix, and increase or decrease in the number of mesangial cells. We also observed alterations in the quantity of glomerular capillaries and increased fibrillar depositions around the renal cortex vessels in infected groups, with or without a high-cholesterol diet. In conclusion, we found that experimental hypercholesterolemia and schistosomiasis induce changes in the structure of the renal glomerulus, as well as disturbances in lipid metabolism and modifications in the host's immunological profile.