Morphometric Studies of the Colon in the Albino Rat

This study was carried out to evaluate the morphometric variations of the colon of female albino rats at different age groups. Fifteen female albino rats were divided into three groups of 5 rats each. Group A included rats at the age of two months, group B included rats aged four months and Group C rats were aged 6 months. After 14 days of acclimatization, the animals were sacrificed by decapitation under 20mg/kg of thiopental sodium intraperitonially, then a thoraco-lumbar incision was made to expose the digestive tract and the colon dissected out for anatomical studies. Grossly, the weight and length of colons increased with age and weight of the animals. Gross morphometry showed that colon length increased with age. Histomorphometry showed that the colon crypt width and height also increased with age. This probably can be attributed to the fact that there is increased demand for nutrients with age. In conclusion, this study was able to show that the colon increased in size with age and rate of colon growth was pronounced at six months old albino rat due to the presence of intense colon fission. This points out to the reason why the risk for colon cancer increases with age.