Histological Study on the Anterior Pituitary Gland of Monosodium Glutamate-Administered Adult Male Wistar Rats

The routine use of Monosodium glutamate (MSG) as a food additive found in commercial food products has being generating controversy regarding its health effects. This study investigated the effects of MSG administration on the histology of anterior pituitary gland in rats. Twenty adult male rats were used and randomly divided into four groups (n=5, each). The rats in the treated groups received a daily MSG administration through orogastric method at a dose of 100 mg/ kg bw/day, 500 mg/ kg bw/day, 1500 mg/ kg bw/day respectively, while the control rats received 0.5 ml of distilled water. The body weight was measured. After sacrifice, the pituitary gland was harvested and fixed with 10% formalin for routine histological procedures. Results revealed decrease in body weight while the histology of the anterior pituitary gland of the rats showed no observable pathological alterations. This study indicates no induced histological damage following oral administration of MSG.