No abstract

Age-related alterations in binding sites of major second messengers and a selective adenosine 3',5'-cyclic monophosphate (cyclic-AMP) phosphodiesterase (PDE) in the gerbil brain were analysed by receptor autoradiography. [3H]Phorbol 12,13-dibutyrate (PDBu), [3H]inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate (IP3), [3H]forskolin, [3H]cyclic-AMP, and [3H]rolipram were used to label protein kinase C (PKC), IP3 receptor, adenylate cyclase, cyclic-AMP dependent protein kinase (PKA), and Ca2+/calmodulin-independent cyclic-AMP PDE, respectively. In middle-aged gerbils (16 months old), [3H]PDBu binding was significantly reduced in the hippocampal CA1 sector, thalamus, substantia nigra, and cerebellum, compared with young animals (1 month old). [3H]IP3 binding revealed significant elevations in the nucleus accumbens, hippocampal CA1 sector, dentate gyrus, and a significant reduction in cerebellum of middle-aged gerbils. [3H]Forskolin binding in middle-aged animals was significantly increased in the nucleus accumbens and hilus of dentate gyrus, but was diminished in the substantia nigra and cerebellum. On the other hand, in middle-aged animals, [3H]cyclic-AMP binding revealed a significant elevation only in the hippocampal CA3 sector, whereas [3H]rolipram binding showed a significant reduction in the thalamus and cerebellum. Thus, the age-related alteration in these binding sites showed different patterns among various brain regions in middle-aged gerbils indicating that the binding sites of PKC, IP3, and adenylate cyclase are more markedly affected by aging than those of PKA and cyclic-AMP PDE and that the hippocampus and cerebellum are more susceptible to these aging processes than other brain regions. The findings suggest that intracellular signal transduction is affected at an early stage of senescence and this may lead to neurological deficits.

We investigated the effects of vinconate and pentobarbital against the alterations in spirodecanone binding in the gerbil striatum and hippocampus 5 h and 7 days after 10 min of cerebral ischemia, using receptor autoradiography. Vinconate and pentobarbital were given intraperitoneally 10 and 30 min prior to ischemic insult, respectively. The spirodecanone binding in vehicle-treated gerbils subjected to ischemia was unchanged in the brain 5 h after recirculation, compared with that in sham-operated animals. Seven days after ischemia, a significant elevation in the spirodecanone binding was observed in the striatum and the stratum radiatum of the hippocampal CA1 sector and the hippocampal CA3 sector of the vehicle-treated animals. Other regions showed no significant change in the binding. Vinconate and pentobarbital showed no significant change in the striatum and hippocampus 5 h after ischemia. However, the administration of vinconate inhibited a significant elevation in the spirodecanone binding in the lateral striatum and the stratum radiatum of hippocampal CAl sector 7 days after ischemia. Pentobarbital also prevented a significant elevation only in the lateral striatum. A histological study revealed that cerebral ischemia caused severe neuronal damage in the lateral striatum and hippocampal CA1 and CA3 sectors. However, ischemic neuronal damage was not observed in the dentate gyrus. An immunohistochemical study also showed that numerous reactive astrocytes were evident in the hippocampus, particularly in the hippocampal CA1 sector, 7 days after ischemia. The present study demonstrates that cerebral ischemia can cause a conspicuous elevation in spirodecanone binding in the striatum and hippocampus. They also suggest that the postischemic elevation in the spirodecanone binding is partly prevented by treatment with vinconate and pentobarbital. These results suggest that the postischemic elevation in spirodecanone binding sites may reflect expression of reactive astrocytes.

We investigated the long-term changes that occur in the gerbil brain following transient cerebral ischemia using histology and receptor autoradiography. Transient ischemia was induced for 3 and 10 min, and animals were allowed to survive for 8 months. A histological study showed that 3-min ischemia caused neuronal damage and mild atrophy only in the hippocampal CA1 sector, and that 10-min ischemia produced severe neuronal damage and marked shrinkage in the hippocampal CA1 and CA3 sectors. Furthermore, severe neuronal damage was seen in the striatum after 10-min ischemia. Autoradiography study revealed that 3-min ischemia caused a significant reduction in [3H] naloxone binding in the frontal cortex, striatum, dentate gyrus, and thalamus, whereas [3H]SCH 23390 and [3H] forskolin binding was not significantly altered in all regions. In contrast, 10-min ischemia produced marked alteration in these binding sites in the striatum, hippocampus, thalamus, and substantia nigra. The alteration was especially notable in the hippocampal region and substantia nigra. These results indicate that hippocampal damage after transient ischemia, compared with that in other regions, is not static, but particularly progressive. Furthermore, they demonstrate a reduction in adenylate cyclase system in the striatum and substantia nigra after transient ischemia. Moreover, our results suggest that long-term survival after ischemia may induce synaptic modification of neurotransmitter and adenylate cyclase system in the hippocampus.