Background: Semicarbazide (SEM) is a byproduct of azodicarbonamide widely employed in the industry of plastic gaskets used in sealing glass jars, especially baby foods jars.
Aim of the Study: To determine the effects and possibility of recovery of semicarbazide on thyroid histology of male juvenile albino rats.
Materials and Methods: Thirty juvenile male albino rats (3 weeks old) were Split into 3 equal groups; group I (control), group II (treated with SEM 40 mg/kg oral daily for 4 weeks), group III (recovery group allowed to recover for 4 weeks after stoppage of SEM treatment). Different histological and immunohistochemical techniques were used on thyroid specimens.
Results: In comparison to the control group, group treated with SEM revealed distortion and degeneration of the thyroid follicles, some follicles appeared markedly distended and lined by flat cells with flat nuclei, desquamated follicular cells were located in the lumen, peripheral vacuolation of colloid, empty follicles, wide interstitial space and dilated congested blood vessels in between follicles. Collagen fibers amount in the interstitial space has increased significantly “P ˂ 0.05". The mean epithelial height and colloid area percentage have both decreased significantly. Activated caspase-3 immunohistochemical expression was significantly increased. Contrary, in the recovery group, most of the Follicles appeared to be normal except for minimal changes in some follicles.
Conclusion: Semicarbazide causes significant histological structural changes in the juvenile thyroid gland and its stoppage caused marked improvement in the thyroid gland histology. It is advisable to replace semicarbazide as a sealing agent for glass jars with other natural products.