Increase in blood-brain barrier permeability by altitude decompression

Previous studies indicated that exposure to compression-decompression increases blood-brain barrier (BBB) permeability to vital dyes and antibiotics. This report concerns functional and ultrastructural BBB changes induced by altitude decompression. A 2% trypan blue solution was intravenously injected (4 ml.kg-1) into 29 experimental and 19 control rabbits. Some animals also received horseradish peroxidase. The experimental animals were subjected to 30,000 ft (4.3 psi) for 45 min. Controls were kept at ground level. The animals were sacrificed 90 min postinjection. Gross and microscopic examination and spectrophotometric dye determination revealed significantly greater tracer penetration in experimental brains (mean dye concentration 27.06 +/- 4.42 micrograms.g-1) than in controls (4.52 +/- 1.52 micrograms.g-1). No sex differences were noted. Electron microscopy suggested that the increased BBB permeability was due to transendothelial vesicular transport and, occasionally, to penetration through interendothelial junctions. These observations may have relevance to pharmacotherapy in space and at high altitudes and to the pathogenesis of altitude decompression sickness.