Avaliação de alterações estruturais na cromatina de monócitos de sangue periférico associadas ao diabetes humano

Abstract

Diabetes mellitus (DM) is a group of metabolic changes that have in common hyperglycemia resulting from insulin insufficiency or problems related to its effective use. Hyperglycemia resulting from the installation of DM can cause important changes in cellular homeostasis, even leading to changes in chromatin organization. Chromatin plays a key role in controlling gene expression, changes in the body's defense cells can compromise the normal function of these cell groups. Among them there are monocytes that, if altered, can generate an immune response different from the expected one. Previous studies reinforce these associations of changes in chromatin organization caused by DM and consequences for immune function. Therefore, it is important that an investigation seeks to understand the relationship of chromatin and nuclear changes with the pathophysiology of diabetes. The aim of this study was to investigate changes in the organization of chromatin in peripheral blood monocytes from patients with diabetes 1 and 2, when compared to non-carriers. For this purpose, images of monocyte nuclei related to Feulgen's cytochemical reaction were analyzed, from the three different groups: Group 1, patients with type 1 DM, Group 2, patients with type 2 DM, and their control groups, without diabetes mellitus. The evaluation of nuclear and chromatin organization was performed using ImageJ software to obtain measurements of geometric, absorptiometry and textural parameters. The results result in expressive changes in chromatin organization in monocyte nuclei from patients with DM1, whose size increases in nuclear size generated by the increase in total DNA content, including chromatin compaction and reorganization, in addition to changes in its shape. And, according to previous data in the literature, such changes may be associated with polyploidy processes. Additionally, there are indications that the insulinemia triggered by the use of insulin glargine would be related to the chromatin changes described in this work. For DM2, chromatin alterations were extremely subtle and correlations were weak, with no evidence that monocytes were affected.