THE CYTOCHEMICAL PROFILE OF VISCERAL MESOTHELIUM UNDER THE INFLUENCE OF LACTATED-HYPEROSMOLAR PERITONEAL-DIALYSIS SOLUTIONS

Male albino mice had one daily intraperitoneal injection of 4.25 g/100 ml glucose concentration fluid for peritoneal dialysis at pH 5.0-5.2, for a period of 30 days. At the end of the experimental periods, mesothelial cell imprints were taken from the peritoneal layer of the anterior liver surface. Histochemical staining of imprints obtained from mice exposed to the peritoneal dialysis fluid showed a consistently increased activity of: (a) enzymes associated with the cell membrane: Na-K-ATP-ase, alkaline phosphatase and 5-nucleotidase; (b) cytoplasmic enzymes: acid phosphatase and cytochrome oxidase, and (c) a modestly increased activity of glucose-6-phosphatase. These changes, which are not far from those observed in activated mesothelial cells, suggest that exposure of mesothelial cells to high glucose concentrations of PD fluid is associated with increased production and disposal of energy to be used for maintaining the constancy of the cellular environment and, probably, for fuelling the transcellular transport of solutes of large molecular size.