The effect of Stavudine on the Nissl bodies of the hippocampus of albino mice

Stavudine is a synthetic antiretroviral agent active against the Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). The increase in production and use of this antiretroviral drug (ARV), and its ability to cross the blood-brain barrier lead us to study the effect of oral administration on the Nissl bodies of the hippocampus of albino mice. Twenty-four albino mice weighing averagely 30g were equally assigned into three groups (A, B, C). Group A served as the control and was not given any treatment, while groups B and C were the experimental groups that received 0.6mg/kg and 1.2mk/kg of stavudine respectively, twelve hourly, for twenty- one days through orogastric tube. Food and water were allowed for the animals ad libitum throughout the experimental period. The animals were sacrificed using chloroform anaesthesia and the whole brains were removed, fixed in formal saline, the hippocampus excised. The tissues were routinely processed and stained using cresyl fast violet staining method. Light microscopic study of the Nissl bodies revealed less number of stained Nissl bodies in groups B and C, especially in the pyramidal layer, and this appeared to have been lesser in group C. This result revealed that stavudine may cause reduction in Nissl bodies in the hippocampus which may consequently affect the synthesis of both structural protein and protein for transport in correlation with neuron function thereby influencing their metabolic activity. It may be said that these reduction in the number of Nissl bodies was dose dependent.