Primary blast injury-induced lesions in the retina of adult rats

Journal of Neuroinflammation

Eng-Ang Ling²  Linli Yao²  Mui Hong Tan¹  Kian Chye Ng¹  Jia Lu¹  Enci Mary Kan¹  Ying-Ying Zou² 

[1] Defense Medical and Environmental Research Institute, DSO National Laboratories, 27 Medical Drive, Singapore 117560, Singapore;Department of Anatomy, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, 4 Medical Drive, Block MD10, Singapore 117597, Singapore

关键词: Apoptosis;    Inflammation;    Aquaporin-4;    Vascular endothelial growth factor;    Nitric oxide synthase;    Retina;    Blast;   

Others  :  1211887
DOI  :  10.1186/1742-2094-10-79

 received in 2013-02-16, accepted in 2013-06-27,  发布年份 2013

【 摘 要 】

Background

The effect of primary blast exposure on the brain is widely reported but its effects on the eye remains unclear. Here, we aim to examine the effects of primary blast exposure on the retina.

Methods

Adult male Sprague–Dawley rats were exposed to primary blast high and low injury and sacrificed at 24 h, 72 h, and 2 weeks post injury. The retina was subjected to western analysis for vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), aquaporin-4 (AQP4), glutamine synthethase (GS), inducible nitric oxide synthase (NOS), endothelial NOS, neuronal NOS and nestin expression; ELISA analysis for cytokines and chemokines; and immunofluorescence for glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP)/VEGF, GFAP/AQP4, GFAP/nestin, GS/AQP4, lectin/iNOS, and TUNEL.

Results

The retina showed a blast severity-dependent increase in VEGF, iNOS, eNOS, nNOS, and nestin expression with corresponding increases in inflammatory cytokines and chemokines. There was also increased AQP4 expression and retinal thickness after primary blast exposure that was severity-dependent. Finally, a significant increase in TUNEL+ and Caspase-3+ cells was observed. These changes were observed at 24 h post-injury and sustained up to 2 weeks post injury.

Conclusions

Primary blast resulted in severity-dependent pathological changes in the retina, manifested by the increased expression of a variety of proteins involved in inflammation, edema, and apoptosis. These changes were observed immediately after blast exposure and sustained up to 2 weeks suggesting acute and chronic injury mechanisms. These changes were most obvious in the astrocytes and Müller cells and suggest important roles for these cells in retina pathophysiology after blast.

【 授权许可】

   
2013 Zou et al.; licensee BioMed Central Ltd.

【 图 表 】

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