• X Yu, Y Liu, S Bo, and L Qinghua.
• Department of Anesthesiology, The First College of Clinical Medical Science, China Three Gorges University, Yichang, China; Department of Anesthesiology, Yichang Central People's Hospital, Yichang, China.
• Acta Anaesthesiol Scand. 2015 Jan 1;59(1):78-84.

BackgroundSevoflurane may be associated with neural toxicity in the developing brain, but the mechanism is still unclear. Phosphorylated extracellular signal-regulated kinases 1/2 (pERK1/2) are important for developing neurons. The aim of our study was to investigate the effects of sevoflurane on spatial learning and memory and on expression of pERK1/2 in hippocampus of neonatal rats.MethodsSixty-three neonatal rats were randomly divided into three groups: control group, sevoflurane (sevo) group, and sham group. Rats in the control group were placed in a plastic chamber flushed continuously for 4 h with air alone, rats in the sevo group were exposed in 5% sevoflurane and air for 4 h, and rats in the sham group were exposed in 5% carbon dioxide and air for 4 h, with identical flow rates for all groups. All three groups were subjected to Morris water maze test 1 day after sevoflurane exposure. Moreover, expression of pERK1/2 was determined by immunochemistry and Western blot at 1, 3, and 6 weeks after exposure.ResultsCompared with the control group, the escape latency was longer in sevo group and the expression of pERK1/2 was significantly inhibited in the sevo group (P < 0.01); no differences between control and sham groups were observed.ConclusionOur study demonstrated that neonatal rats exposed to sevoflurane had impaired spatial learning and memory, and this may be attributed to decreased pERK1/2 in the hippocampus.© 2014 The Acta Anaesthesiologica Scandinavica Foundation. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

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