Extracellular putrescine content after acute excitotoxic brain damage in the rat

• Published in: Neuroscience letters Vol. 330; no. 1; pp. 74 - 78
• Main Authors: Vivó, Meritxell, Camón, Lluı̈sa, de Vera, Núria, Martı́nez, Emili
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Shannon Elsevier Ireland Ltd 13-09-2002; Elsevier
• Subjects: Animals; Biochemistry and metabolism; Biological and medical sciences; Central nervous system; Corpus Striatum - drug effects; Corpus Striatum - metabolism; Corpus Striatum - pathology; Excitatory Amino Acid Agonists - adverse effects; Extracellular Space - metabolism; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Hypoxia, Brain - chemically induced; Hypoxia, Brain - metabolism; Hypoxia, Brain - pathology; Kainic acid; Kainic Acid - adverse effects; Male; Microdialysis; Ornithine decarboxylase (ODC); Polyamines; Putrescine; Putrescine - metabolism; Rats; Rats, Wistar; Spermidine; Spermidine - metabolism; Striatum; Vertebrates: nervous system and sense organs; Striatum; Microdialysis; Spermidine; Putrescine; Ornithine decarboxylase (ODC); Polyamines; Kainic acid; Polyamine; Rat; Toxicity; Acute; Rodentia; Central nervous system; Corpus striatum; Extracellular; Vertebrata; Mammalia; Excitotoxicity; Brain (vertebrata)
• ISSN: 0304-3940; 1872-7972
• DOI: 10.1016/S0304-3940(02)00733-4

We examined the effects of the local infusion of kainic acid (KA), by reverse dialysis in the rat striatum, on the concentration of polyamines in the extracellular striatal compartment and in tissue. KA infusion markedly increased (3-fold) extracellular putrescine (PUT) concentration, which reached its maximum at the end of the dialysis experiments (6 h). Tissue PUT concentration was also increased (2-fold) in the striatum perfused with KA but not in the contralateral side. Extracellular spermidine (SD) concentration but not tissue SD concentration was affected by KA. The increase in PUT was accompanied by histological damage around the probe and by an increase in ornithine decarboxylase content, as assessed by immunohistochemistry. These results indicate that in the first stages of the excitotoxic lesion, there is an increase in the extracellular concentrations of PUT and SD.