Freeze-fracture cytochemistry of cholesterol content in neuronal plasma membrane following cerebral ischaemia.
Minor changes on the neuronal perikaryon cytoplasm and large alterations in neuronal processes have been demonstrated with transmission electron microscopy after 60 minutes of focal and selective cerebral ischaemia. The distribution of cholesterol in neuronal plasma membrane and perikarya plasmalemma of normal and ischaemic caudate nucleus was investigated with the polyene antibiotic filipin, a morphological probe for membrane cholesterol domains in freeze-fracture replicas. After filipin incubation of prefixed vibratome slices, filipin-cholesterol complexes appeared as 20-30 proturberances and pits on P- and E-faces. Distinct patterns of filipin-cholesterol complexes were found in non-ischaemic and ischaemic neuronal membrane. The filipin-treated specimens showed a 35-40% drop in cholesterol content in the neuronal plasmalemma one hour after cerebral ischaemia.
D000818:Animals; D002415:Cats; D002421:Caudate Nucleus / Q000648:ultrastructure*; D002462:Cell Membrane / Q000648:ultrastructure; D002784:Cholesterol / Q000032:analysis*; D005614:Freeze Fracturing; D002546:Ischemic Attack, Transient / Q000473:pathology*; D008563:Membrane Lipids / Q000032:analysis*; D008854:Microscopy, Electron; D009474:Neurons / Q000648:ultrastructure*; D012016:Reference Values
D008563:Membrane Lipids; D002784:Cholesterol