U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Skip to Main Navigation
Skip to Page Content
Skip to Atlas Navigation

Thyroid Gland - C Cell Hyperplasia

Image of C cell hyperplasia in the thyroid gland from a female F344/N rat in a chronic study
Thyroid gland, C cell - Hyperplasia in a treated female F344 rat from a chronic study. Aggregates and small nests of C cells have replaced follicles in this thyroid gland.
Figure 1 of 4
Image of C cell hyperplasia in the thyroid gland from a female F344/N rat in a chronic study
Thyroid gland, C cell - Hyperplasia in a treated female F344 rat from a chronic study. Higher magnification of Figure 1 shows the contiguous nests of C cells surrounding small follicles.
Figure 2 of 4
Image of C cell hyperplasia in the thyroid gland from a male F344/N rat in a chronic study
Thyroid gland, C cell - Hyperplasia in a control male F344 rat from a chronic study. A focal proliferation of C cells is present in this thyroid gland (arrow).
Figure 3 of 4
Image of C cell hyperplasia in the thyroid gland from a male F344/N rat in a chronic study
Thyroid gland, C cell - Hyperplasia in a control male F344 rat from a chronic study. Higher magnification of Figure 3 shows illustrates the high nuclear-to-cytoplasmic ratio in this focal proliferation of C cells.
Figure 4 of 4
next arrow
View all images

comment:

C-cell hyperplasia is a common finding in chronic rat studies and can be diffuse ( Figure 1image opens in a pop-up window and Figure 2image opens in a pop-up window ), focal ( Figure 3image opens in a pop-up window and Figure 4image opens in a pop-up window ), or multifocal. C-cell hyperplasia is distinguished from C-cell adenoma based on the size of any given focal proliferation. The generally accepted criteria for C-cell hyperplasia is a focal C-cell cluster less than five average follicular diameters or similarly small-sized clusters of C cells scattered in interfollicular spaces. In contrast to C-cell adenomas, C-cell hyperplasia is not associated with significant compression of adjacent parenchyma. C-cell hyperplasias may contain individual trapped follicles ( Figure 1image opens in a pop-up window and Figure 2image opens in a pop-up window ). C-cell hyperplasia generally consists of round to polyhedral cells with abundant eosinophilic cytoplasm ( Figure 2image opens in a pop-up window ); in some cases there is a higher than typical nuclear-to-cytoplasmic ratio ( Figure 4image opens in a pop-up window ).

recommendation:

C-cell hyperplasia should be diagnosed when present, given a severity grade. If bilateral it should be indicated in the diagnosis with a severity grade based on the more severely affected thyroid gland.

references:

Capen CC, Martin SL. 1989. The effects of xenobiotics on the structure and function of thyroid follicular and C-cells. Toxicol Pathol 17:266-293.
Abstract: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/2675279

Capen CC, DeLellis RA, Yarrington JT. 2002. Endocrine system. In: Handbook of Toxicologic Pathology, Vol 2 (Haschek WM, Rousseaux CG, Wallig MA, eds). Academic Press, New York, 681–783.
Abstract: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/book/9780123302151

Chandra S, Hoenerhoff MJ, Peterson R. 2013. Endocrine glands. In: Toxicologic Pathology: Nonclinical Safety Assessment (Sahota PS, Popp JA, Hardisty JF, Gopinath G, eds). CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL, 655-716.
Abstract: http://www.crcpress.com/product/isbn/9781439872109

Collins WT, Capen CC, Kasza L, Carter C, Dailey RE. 1977. Effect of polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) on the thyroid gland of rats. Ultrastructural and biochemical investigations. Am J Pathol 89:119-136.
Abstract: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/199066

Greaves P. 2007. Histopathology of Preclinical Toxicity Studies: Interpretation and Relevance in Drug Safety Evaluation, 3rd ed. Academic Press, Amsterdam, 819-839.
Abstract: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/book/9780444527714

Hardisty JF, Boorman GA. 1990. Thyroid gland. In: Pathology of the Fischer Rat: Reference and Atlas (Boorman GA, Eustis SL, Elwell MR, Montgomery CA, MacKenzie WF, eds). Academic Press, San Diego, 519–536.
Abstract: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/nlmcatalog/9002563

Back to top

Web page last updated on: August 11, 2014