Experimental neurology
-
Experimental neurology · May 2009
Longitudinal microPET imaging of brain glucose metabolism in rat lithium-pilocarpine model of epilepsy.
The lithium-pilocarpine model of epilepsy in rat has been used extensively to investigate basic mechanisms of epilepsy and mimics human temporal lobe epilepsy. Our aim was to investigate longitudinal alterations in metabolism after lithium-pilocarpine induced status epilepticus (SE) using [(18)F]FDG microPET. Twenty-eight Wistar rats received lithium chloride followed by pilocarpine (n=19) or saline (n=9) IP. ⋯ There were no significant differences between SS and no SS animals in CR condition. Pilocarpine-induced SE causes a severe, but transient reduction in overall metabolism on D3 in rat brain. Metabolic differences on D3 between SS and no SS animals need further study to investigate potential use as an early marker of epileptogenesis.
-
Experimental neurology · May 2009
Sex differences in the response to activation of the poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase pathway after experimental stroke.
It is increasingly recognized that histological and functional outcomes after stroke are shaped by biologic sex. Emerging data suggests that ischemic cell death pathways are sexually dimorphic (Hurn, P., Vannucci, S., Hagberg, H. (2005) Adult or perinatal brain injury: does sex matter?. Stroke 36, 193-195 ; Lang, J. ⋯ In contrast, female Harlequin mice had no neuroprotective effect of gene deletion despite robust reductions in PAR formation and AIF translocation. Although equivalent activation of this cell death pathway occurs in both sexes after ischemia, detrimental effects are only present in males. AIF translocation and PAR formation do not mediate ischemic injury in the female brain, therefore agents designed to reduce PARP1 activation are unlikely to benefit females.
-
Experimental neurology · May 2009
Nociceptive responses and spinal plastic changes of afferent C-fibers in three neuropathic pain models induced by sciatic nerve injury in the rat.
Peripheral nerve injuries induce plastic changes on primary afferent fibers and on the spinal circuitry, which are related to the emergence of neuropathic pain. In this study we compared three models of sciatic nerve injury in the rat with different degrees of damage and impact on regeneration capability: crush nerve injury, chronic constriction injury (CCI) and spared nerve injury (SNI). All three models were characterized by means of nerve histology, in order to describe the degenerative and regenerative process of injured axons. ⋯ After CCI, changes on SP-immunoreactivity were not observed, and IB4-immunoreactive area decreased initially but recovered to normal levels on the second week post-injury. Thus, nociceptive responses depend on the type of injury, and the immunoreactivity pattern of afferent fibers at the spinal cord display changes less pronounced after partial than complete sciatic nerve injury. Although signs of neuropathic pain appear in all three lesion models, nociceptive responses and central plasticity patterns differ between them.
-
Experimental neurology · May 2009
Daily intermittent hypoxia augments spinal BDNF levels, ERK phosphorylation and respiratory long-term facilitation.
Acute intermittent hypoxia (AIH) elicits a form of respiratory plasticity known as long-term facilitation (LTF). We hypothesized that: 1) daily AIH (dAIH) preconditioning enhances phrenic and hypoglossal (XII) LTF in a rat strain with low constitutive LTF expression; 2) dAIH induces brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), a critical protein for phrenic LTF (pLTF) in the cervical spinal cord; and 3) dAIH increases post-AIH extracellular regulated kinase (ERK) activation. Phrenic and XII motor output were monitored in anesthetized dAIH- or sham-treated Brown Norway rats with and without acute AIH. pLTF was observed in both sham (18+/-9% baseline; 60 min post-hypoxia; p<0.05; n=18) and dAIH treated rats (37+/-8%; p<0.05; n=14), but these values were not significantly different (p=0.13). ⋯ AIH increased BDNF in sham (25+/-8%; p<0.05), but not dAIH-pretreated rats (-7+/-4%), and had complex effects on ERK phosphorylation (ERK2 increased in shams whereas ERK1 increased in dAIH-treated rats). Thus, dAIH elicits metaplasticity in LTF, revealing XII LTF in a rat strain with no constitutive XII LTF expression. Increased BDNF synthesis may no longer be necessary for phrenic LTF following dAIH preconditioning since BDNF concentration is already elevated.
-
Experimental neurology · Apr 2009
Enhanced recovery of human spinothalamic function is associated with central neuropathic pain after SCI.
Spinothalamic tract (STT) dysfunction seems to be crucially involved in the development of central neuropathic pain (NP) after spinal cord injury (SCI). However, previous attempts to identify differences in the extent or location of STT damage between subjects with and without NP failed. ⋯ Furthermore, the correlation between current pain intensity (assessed on average 5 years after SCI) and extent of functional recovery substantiates the close relationship between recovery of STT function and the occurrence of NP. These findings contribute to a better understanding of mechanisms involved in the generation of NP after SCI.