Study on the relationship between apoptosis and leukocytes in rats with acute pancreatitis

Objective:To investigate the mechanisms of pancreatic acina cell apoptosis in rats with acute pancreatitis(AP).Methods:The model of AP was induced by retrograde injection of 4% sodium taurocholate into biliopancreatic duct in rats. A terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase mediated dUTP biotion nick end labeling(TUNEL) was used to detect apoptosis. Leukocytes were identified by morphological features on paraffin sections obtained from the pancreas stained with HE.Results:Apoptosis index of AP rats at 6 h was higher significantly than that at 3,12 h(3 h P0.05,12 h P0.01,respectively). The types of leukocyte differed significantly in AP rats. Compared with that at 3,12 h,the percentage of macrophages at 6 h were significantly higher(3 h P0.05,12 h P0.01,respectively),while the percentage of neutrophils at 6 h were significantly lower(3 h P0.05,12 h P0.01,respectively).Conclusion:Pancreatic acina cells undergoing apoptosis may result from differences in inflammatory cell infiltration in AP.