The effect of MS14 on body weight, spleen index and structures of kidney, liver, spleen, lung, lymph node and bone marrow histology in Balb/c mice

Abstract MS14 is an Herbal-marine preparation that has been used in experimental studies for the management of Multiple sclerosis, (MS). In this study the effect of MS14 on body weight, spleen index and the histological picture of various organs was evaluated. Female Balb/C mice of 6-8 weeks age were divided into control and test groups. MS14 was orally administrated at a dose of 100 mg/kg for five days to the experimental group and normal saline given to the control group. After euthanasia on day six, the body weight was measured, spleen index was calculated and representative pieces of tissues including kidney, liver, spleen, lung, lymph node and bone marrow were collected in 10% formalin solution and processed through a standard paraffin embedding method. Sections of 5 micrometer thickness were cut and stained with hematoxylin and eosin. MS14 at 100 mg/kg did not affect body weight and spleen index, but in the test group, at least 50% of spleen and 90% of lymph node micro sections showed lymphoid hyperplasia: no reactive changes were observed in controls. In both groups, histological evaluation of kidney, liver, spleen, lung, lymph node and bone marrow micro sections showed no significant histological alterations in the normal architecture. According to result of this study, it seems that although MS14 has no effect on body weight and spleen index, it may induce hyperplastic changes in spleen & lymph nodes, thus signaling activation of the immune system. Keywords: MS14, "body weight", spleen index, spleen, lymph nodes, histology.