White matter injury in the immature brain: role of interleukin-18.

Abstract

Inflammation is likely to be important in the pathophysiology of white matter damage in the immature brain. In order to investigate the involvement of interleukin (IL)-18, we subjected 9-day-old IL-18-deficient and wild-type (WT) mice to hypoxia-ischemia (HI) (unilateral carotid ligation and exposure to 10% oxygen) and white matter injury was evaluated after 3 days by immunostaining for myelin basic protein (MBP) and neurofilament (NF). The immunoreactivity of MBP was significantly higher by 92, 49 and 21%, respectively, in subcortical white matter, striatum and thalamus in IL-18-deficient mice versus WT mice following HI. Similarly, there was a more pronounced immunoreactivity of NF by 78% in the subcortical white matter in IL-18 KO versus WT mice. IL-18 was expressed by astrocytes and microglia, whereas the IL-18 receptor was mainly found in astrocytes localized in and around the subventricular white matter. Taken together, these results indicate that release of IL-18 may play an important role in the development of white matter injury in the neonatal brain.

• Authors: Maj Hedtjärn, Carina Mallard, Pernilla Arvidsson, Henrik Hagberg
• Journal: Neuroscience letters (Neurosci Lett) Vol. 373 Issue 1 Pg. 16-20 (Jan 03 2005) ISSN: 0304-3940 [Print] Ireland
• PMID: 15555769 (Publication Type: Journal Article, Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't)

Chemical References

• Interleukin-18
• Myelin Basic Protein

Topics

• Animals
• Animals, Newborn
• Astrocytes (metabolism)
• Female
• Hypoxia-Ischemia, Brain (metabolism, pathology)
• Immunohistochemistry
• Interleukin-18 (deficiency, metabolism)
• Male
• Mice
• Mice, Knockout
• Microglia (metabolism)
• Myelin Basic Protein (metabolism)