Bee Venom Stimulates Hormone Secretion in Rat Somatotroph and Corticotroph Cells: Digital Image Analysis of Secretory Granules

Abstract In this study, we characterized secretory granules in somatotroph (STCs) and corticotroph (CTCs) cells from the anterior pituitary of rats, in conjunction with different experimental treatments with bee venom (BV). In the rats injected for 30 days with daily BV doses equivalent to one sting, we found significant changes in secretory granules' diameter: reduced by 48.15% in STCs and increased by 5.09% in CTCs, and especially a shift to gray into their intensity profile: increased by 237.04% in STCs and by 212.38% in CTCs. In the rats injected with a single high BV dose, the granules' diameter was reduced in both STCs (by 7.14%) and CTCs (by 4.67%—significant) and their gray intensity profile increased by 200% in STCs and by 51.71% in CTCs (both are significant). The changes in the gray profile reflected a reduced content of granules in the cells, consistent with an increase of the plasma levels of GH and ACTH in all cases. We concluded that the reduced hormone cargo of granules in STCs and CTCs resulted from an accelerated cell secretion. The results obtained for the two types of cells correlated, indicating a similar reaction of these secretory cells to the prolonged and acute presence of BV in the organism.