Survival of hippocampal neurons in culture upon hypoxia: effect of erythropoietin

The potential of erythropoietin (EPO) to reduce hypoxia-induced cell death has been investigated in 5-day-old primary cultures of rat postnatal hippocampal neurons. Application of EPO (100 pM) at the start of hypoxia resulted in a significant reduction of neuronal death (33.0 +/- 7.5% in cells incubated with EPO vs 56.75 +/- 7.3% in non-treated cells; n = 4, p < 0.021). Similiar results were obtained upon application of cycloheximide (CHX; 1 microM) simultaneously with hypoxia (34.75 +/- 5.6% vs 56.75 +/- 7.3% with and without CHX, respectively, n = 4, p < 0.035), indicating that hypoxia-induced neuronal death is an active, protein synthesis-dependent process. Both, EPO and EPO receptor (EPOR) were found to be expressed after hypoxia in hippocampal neurons in vitro and in vivo. These results demonstrate for the first time that EPO can reverse hypoxia-induced neuronal death when applied simultaneously with the hypoxic stimulus.     

Differential expression of hippocampal connexins after acute hypoxia in the developing brain

Acute hypoxia at postnatal day (P) 10 is an accepted model of human neonatal hypoxia which results, among other consequences, in increased hippocampal excitability. Hypoxic–ischemic injury, which mimics stroke, has been shown to result in changes in connexins (Cxs), however, changes in Cxs have not been studied in the P10 hypoxia model. The aim of this study was to investigate changes in the hippocampal expression of three different connexins at consecutive developmental stages after acute hypoxia at P10 (10 min and 30 min after reoxygenation, P11, P14, P17, P29, and P45) as compared to sham manipulated pups. After acute hypoxia at P10, Cx30 protein levels were increased at 30 min after reoxygenation, at P11 and at P14, and then returned to control levels. Cx36 protein levels transiently decreased at P11 after acute hypoxia then returned to control levels. Cx43 protein levels did not change at any of the time points. Although changes in mRNA expression were observed during development for Cx30 only, acute hypoxia did not result in changes in mRNA expression of all these Cxs when compared to age matched controls suggesting that acute hypoxia induced posttranslational changes in protein expression.     

促红细胞生成素干预缺氧缺血性脑损伤新生鼠神经干细胞巢蛋白的表达☆

背景: 巢蛋白是一种存在于神经干细胞的特异性抗原,在神经系统发生病变或损伤引起再生时广泛表达,因此巢蛋白表达常用作判定神经系统发生病变或损伤后能否促进神经再生的一种手段。 目的：从神经再生和神经干细胞激活的角度,探讨外源性促红细胞生成素对新生鼠缺氧缺血性脑损伤后神经干细胞巢蛋白表达的影响。 方法：结扎大鼠右侧颈总动脉和8%低氧暴露2 h制备新生大鼠缺氧缺血性脑损伤模型。对照组仅游离右侧颈总动脉,不予结扎和缺氧处理。干预组大鼠缺氧缺血后立即腹腔注射重组人促红细胞生成素5 000 IU/kg,1次/d,连用3 d。缺氧缺血性脑损伤组大鼠缺氧缺血后连续腹腔注射等量生理盐水溶液3 d。每组随机取8只分别于术后4,7,14 d处死。应用免疫组化方法和计算机图像分析技术检测不同时点海马齿状回巢蛋白标记阳性细胞的变化。 结果与结论：各时点缺氧缺血性脑损伤组巢蛋白阳性细胞数较对照组增加(P < 0.05);各时点干预组巢蛋白阳性细胞较对照组和缺氧缺血性脑损伤组均增加(P < 0.05)。3组大鼠海马齿状回区巢蛋白阳性细胞数均于术后 7 d 达高峰。结果提示早期给予重组人促红细胞生成素可促使新生鼠缺氧缺血性脑损伤后海马齿状回区巢蛋白表达增加,促进神经干细胞的增殖再生,在缺氧缺血性脑损伤后神经再生、修复中发挥一定的保护作用。     

Immediate and delayed hippocampal neuronal loss induced by kainic acid during early postnatal development in the rat

The degree to which the neonatal hippocampus is resistant to the effects of excitotoxins, such as kainic acid (KA) remains uncertain. Previously, we showed delayed loss of hippocampal neurons during pubescence in neonatal rats subjected to intracerebroventricular (i.c.v.) KA administration (10 nmol) at postnatal day 7 (P7). To further characterize the time course as well as the underlying mechanisms of this neuronal loss, we administered i.c.v. KA (10 or 50 nmol) to P7 preweanling rats. Brain sections were then examined at several neurodevelopmental time points (i.e., P8, P14, P25, P40, P60 and P75) using thionin staining and three-dimensional, non-biased cell counting to assess neuronal loss, and immunohistochemistry and electron microscopy to search for evidence of necrosis and apoptosis. Dose-dependent acute neuronal loss was observed at P8-P14 in hippocampal subfields CA3a and CA3c. Transient heat shock protein (HSP-70) immunostaining accompanied this acute neuronal loss. Progressive neuronal loss then continued in CA3 until P75, but without concomitant HSP-70 immunostaining. Progressive neuronal cell loss was also observed in the CA1 subfield of the hippocampus beginning at pubescence (i.e., P40) and continuing until P75. The appearance of TUNEL-positive hippocampal neurons accompanied the delayed neuronal loss in both CA3 and CA1 and electron micrographs confirmed that neurons in these subfields were undergoing apoptosis. KA administration (i.c.v.) to preweanling rats caused both immediate and delayed damage to hippocampal neurons. The effect of KA was dose-dependent, and the delayed neuronal damage occurred through an apoptosis-mediated mechanism. These findings may be relevant to the pathogenesis of some neuropsychiatric disorders, where early CNS injury is not apparent until the onset of clinical symptoms in young adulthood.     

氨甲酰化促红细胞生成素衍生物对小鼠低氧脑损伤保护作用的研究

目的：观察氦甲酰化促红细胞生成素衍生物（CEPO）对低氧所致小鼠海马损伤的保护作用。方法：成年雄性C57／B6小鼠置低氧（8％O2）分别处理0,5、1．5、3和6h,记录各组小鼠复氧后连续6及30d的Y迷宫训练错误反应次数。用免疫组化检测海马神经元核蛋白（NeuN）。在此基础上,将经Y迷宫训练筛选的小鼠低氧处理6h,并分为3组：CEPO组、促红细胞生成素（EPO）组和生理盐水组,隔日1次分别腹腔注射CEPO、EPO和生理盐水,共15次。第10和30天对小鼠进行Y迷宫测试,记录错误反应次数。用NeuN免疫组化检测给予药物干预2次（72h）后各组小鼠海马神经元的脱失状况。结果：①低氧处理的小鼠学习能力明显下降,以低氧3h组和6h组尤为明显;第30天Y迷宫测试时,低氧6h组的错误反应次数最高;NeuN免疫染色显示低氧后复氧3d的各组小鼠海马各亚区神经元均有明显脱失,以低氧6h组最为明显。②第10和30天Y迷宫测试显示,低氧小鼠经CEPO或EPO干预后Y迷宫的错误反应次数明显低于生理盐水处理的小鼠;NeuN免疫染色显示低氧小鼠给予CEPO或EPO处理后海马神经元脱失明显少于生理盐水处理的小鼠。结论：低氧处理6h的小鼠学习和记忆能力明显降低,海马神经元损伤严重。CEPO具有与EPO相似的减轻低氧所致学习和记忆损伤、减少海马神经元脱失的作用。     

Hemodynamic parameters and neurogenic pulmonary edema following spinal cord injury: an experimental model

Neurogenic pulmonary edema is a serious and always life-threatening complication following several lesions of the central nervous system. We report an experiment with 58 Wistar-Hanover adult male rats. Two groups were formed: control (n=4) and experimental (n=54). The experimental group sustained acute midthoracic spinal cord injury by Fogarty's balloon-compression technique containing 20 microL of saline for 5, 15, 30 or 60 seconds. The rats were anesthetized by intraperitoneal (i.p.) sodium pentobarbital (s.p.) 60 mg/Kg. The quantitative neurological outcome was presented at 4, 24 and 48 hours from compression to characterize the injury graduation in different groups. Poor outcome occurred with 60 seconds of compression. Six animals died suddenly with pulmonary edema. Using the procedure to investigate the pulmonary edema during 60 seconds of compression, followed by decompression and time-course of 60 seconds, 20 rats were randomly assigned to one of the following groups: control (1, n=4, anesthetized by i.p. s.p., 60 mg/Kg but without compression) and experimental (2, n=7, anesthetized by i.p. xylazine 10 mg/Kg and ketamine 75 mg/Kg) and (3, n=9, anesthetized by i.p. s.p., 60 mg/Kg). The pulmonary index (100 x wet lung weight/body weight) was 0.395 +/- 0.018 in control group, rose to 0.499 +/- 0.060 in group 2, and was 0.639 +/- 0.14 in group 3. Histologic examination of the spinal cord showed parenchymal ruptures and acute hemorrhage. Comparison of the pulmonary index with morphometric evaluation of edema fluid-filled alveoli by light microscopy showed that relevant intra-alveolar edema occurred only for index values above 0.55. The results suggest that the pulmonary edema induced by spinal compression is of neurogenic nature and that the type of anesthesia used might be important for the genesis of lung edema.     

The effect of mixed bovine brain gangliosides on hypoxic conduction block in control and streptozotocin-diabetic rats.

This study describes the electrophysiological responses of endoneurial preparations derived from rat sciatic nerve to acute hypoxia in vitro. Preparations from control rats exhibited a 40% decline in compound action potential (CAP) amplitude after 40 min exposure to medium gassed with 8% O2. In preparations from 4 week streptozotocin-diabetic rats CAP declined by only 29%, indicating a resistance to hypoxic conduction blockade. Treating diabetic rats with mixed bovine brain gangliosides (10 mg/kg/day i.p.) exaggerated this resistance to hypoxic conduction blockade as CAP amplitude fell to only 18% of initial values. In a separate experiment, treating non-diabetic rats with gangliosides (10 mg/kg/day i.p.) or adding gangliosides (400 micrograms/ml) directly to the medium in which control nerves were maintained during in vitro recording also significantly attenuated the decline in CAP amplitude after 40 min hypoxia, thus effectively inducing a resistance to hypoxic conduction blockade similar to that observed in nerves from diabetic rats. These studies demonstrate that the systemic or acute local administration of gangliosides induces a resistance to hypoxic conduction block in normal nerve and exaggerates the resistance to hypoxic conduction block of diabetic rats.     

Antioxidant properties of propofol and erythropoietin after closed head injury in rats

Reactive oxygen species play a role during brain injury due to closed head trauma. Enzymatic or nonenzymatic antioxidants may protect brain tissue against oxidative damage. The present study was performed to assess the changes of endogenous indices of oxidative stress in serum from rats subjected to head trauma and whether treatment with propofol and/or erythropoietin (EPO) modifies the levels of endogenous indices of oxidative stress. For these purposes, female Wistar Albino rats were divided into five groups: non-traumatic sham group, trauma performed control, trauma with propofol (i.p.), trauma with EPO (i.p.) and trauma with propofol and EPO performed study groups. At the end of the experimental procedure, blood was taken by cardiac puncture to determine superoxide dismutase (SOD) and xanthine oxidase (XO) activities as well as malondialdehyde (MDA) and nitric oxide (NO) levels in serum. Serum MDA level of control traumatic brain injury (TBI) group was significantly higher than sham operation group (p<0.012). Serum MDA levels in propofol, EPO and propofol+EPO groups were found to be decreased in comparison with control group (p<0.039, p<0.030 and p<0.018, respectively). Serum NO level was found to be increased in TBI group, but difference was not statistically significant when compared to sham-operated group (p=0.092). Propofol, EPO and propofol+EPO administration efficiently reduced serum NO levels to reach sham-operated group (p<0.002, p<0.001 and p<0.015, respectively). These results suggested that acute administration of both propofol and EPO altered the indices of oxidative stress similarly against brain injury due to trauma.     

Potential neuroprotective effects of continuous topiramate therapy in the developing brain

Because antiepileptic drug therapy is usually given chronically with resulting concerns about long-term neurotoxicity, and because short-term topiramate (TPM) therapy has been reported to be neuroprotective against the effects of acute hypoxia, we investigated the long-term effects of continuous TPM therapy during early stages of development. Four groups of rat pups were studied: two sham manipulated normoxia groups and two acute hypoxia groups (at postnatal day [P] 10 down to 4% O(2)), each injected intraperitoneally daily with either vehicle or TPM (30 mg/kg) from P0 to P21. TPM therapy prevented hypoxia-induced long-term (P81) memory impairment (Morris water maze) as well as aggressivity (handling test). The hypoxia group receiving TPM also showed a trend toward reduced CA1 hippocampal cell loss. The aforementioned TPM therapy had no long-term deleterious effects on memory, hyperactivity, or CA1 cell counts in the TPM normoxia group as compared with normal controls.