Morphometric and structural study of the pineal gland of the Wistar rat subjected to the pulse action of a 52 Gauss, (50 Hz) magnetic field. Evolutive analysis over 21 days.

A study is made of the pinealocyte karyometric index and pineal gland ultrastructure in 60 male Wistar rats (250 g on average) sacrificed 1, 3, 7, 15 and 21 days after commencing application of a magnetic field (intensity, 52 Gauss; frequency, 50 Hz) for a period of 30 minutes daily. A progressive decrease was observed in karyometric index corresponding to both the peripheral and central gland region, with a significant difference between the two after 3 and 7 days (p less than 0.0001). A significant increase in lipid activity was also seen during the same period. Pineal gland structural organization during the experimental period is evaluated at both light and electron microscope level.