The Haematological Profile Of The Sprague-Dawley Outbred Albino Rat In Nsukka, Nigeria

This study determined the haematological profiles of Sprague-Dawley (SD) outbred albino rats of both sexes and diferent age sets bred and maintained at the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine Laboratory Animal Unit, University of Nigeria, Nsukka, Nigeria. Erythrocyte counts (EC), packed cell volume (PCV), haemoglobin concentraton (Hb), erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR), tota leukocyte counts (TLC), and differential leukocyte counts (DLC), were carried out following standard procedures on blood samples collected from 543 rats (267 males and 276 unbred females) during a 14-month study period. Results of the determinations for each of the haematoogical characteristics were compared with standard reference values generated in temperate countries for specific age sets and sexes of the rats. Findings from our study showed that there weresignificant differences in the normal values of some of the indices between the sexes and age sets orats studied also there were significant differences for some indices in some age sets and sexes between the results obtained in Nsukka Nigeria and the ones generated in temperate climatic conditions - means of the PCV, Hb, mean corpuscular volume, mean corpuscular haemoglobin and absolute numbers of the different leukocytic cellular elements of the rats studied were found to significantly differ from comparable standard reference values generated in temperate locations for specific age sets and sexes, but the means o the EC and TLC were not found to significantly differ from thetemperate values. The results of the study were discussed in relation to climatic and geographical locational factors (especially temperature) as they affect the normal reference haematological values, and the relevance of haematology in model animal experimentation and biomedical research. Keywords: Haematology, Rat, Sprague-Dawley strain, Nsukka, Nigeria.Animal Research International Vol. 1 (2) 2004 pp. 125-13