Differentiating characteristics of myocardial nuclei in cardiomyopathy.

Myocardial tissue obtained by endomyocardial biopsy was semiquantitatively evaluated for nuclear and nucleolar characteristics in six groups of patients: patients with normal cardiac function (group 1), doxorubicin-induced cardiomyopathy (group 2), idiopathic cardiomyopathy (group 3), alcoholic cardiomyopathy (group 4), post-viral cardiomyopathy (group 5), and chronic valvular heart disease (group 6). From each patient, ten nuclei containing nucleoli were examined and rated on the basis of the following characteristics: chromatin clumping, number of fibrillar centers per nucleolus, nucleolonemal structure, size of nucleolus, number of nucleoli per nucleus, and stage of nucleolar change. Mean values for the nuclear characteristics in each group were compared with normal values using the unpaired t test. In the doxorubicin treated group there were significantly increased chromatin clumping, decreased fibrillar centers, decreased nucleolonemal structure, and increased numbers of contracted nucleoli (indicating later stage). These changes may be linked to lowered nuclear and nucleolar activity. In the idiopathic and post-viral groups, characteristics were consistent with increased nuclear and nucleolar activity. There were no significant changes from normal in the nucleolar features of either the alcoholic or valvular groups. Further comparisons between groups using one-way analysis of variance and multivariate statistical analysis support the conclusion that there are significant differences in the nuclear and nucleolar characteristics of these groups.