title: Chronic low level lead exposure precociously induces rat glial development in vitro and in vivo.
abstract: Lead has been demonstrated to induce precocious glial differentiation both in vitro and in vivo. Lead-treated rat glioma (C6) and cerebellar astrocytes exhibited cytoplasmic extensions and the presence of glial endfeet after a 3-day exposure to 10(-6) to 10(-4) M PbCl2. In similar experiments no effect was noted in neuroblastoma (Neuro-2a) or on neurite outgrowth from chick spinal cord explants. This prodifferentiative effect on glia was also seen in the cerebella of postnatal rats in which the developmental expression of glial-specific glutamine synthetase activity was significantly increased up to postnatal day 12 after chronic exposure to lead from time of birth via their dam's drinking water (400 mg PbCl2/l).
mesh_terms: D000367:Age Factors; D000818:Animals; D002454:Cell Differentiation; D002460:Cell Line; D002531:Cerebellum / Q000166:cytology* / Q000187:drug effects / Q000254:growth & development; D002642:Chick Embryo; D005910:Glioma; D005974:Glutamate-Ammonia Ligase / Q000378:metabolism*; D007854:Lead / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000494:pharmacology*; D009447:Neuroblastoma; D009457:Neuroglia / Q000166:cytology* / Q000187:drug effects; D013116:Spinal Cord / Q000166:cytology / Q000187:drug effects; D014407:Tumor Cells, Cultured / Q000187:drug effects*
chemical_list: D007854:Lead; D005974:Glutamate-Ammonia Ligase