title: Aspartate-induced neuronal necrosis in infant mice: protective effect of carbohydrate and insulin.
abstract: Infant mice given large doses of glutamate or aspartate develop hypothalamic neuronal necrosis. Studies by others demonstrated that simultaneous administration of carbohydrate or prior injection with insulin markedly decreased glutamate-induced neuronal damage. We investigated whether carbohydrate and insulin exert a similar protective effect against aspartate-induced neuronal necrosis. Eight-day-old mice administered aspartate at 750 and 1000 mg/kg body weight developed neuronal necrosis (45.9 +/- 7.2 and 80.8 +/- 17.3 necrotic neurons/section, respectively). When carbohydrate (1 g/kg body weight) was administered simultaneously no lesions were detected in mice administered 750 mg/kg body weight aspartate, while 30.1 +/- 14.2 necrotic neurons/section were noted at 1000 mg aspartate/kg body weight. Mice administered 1000 mg/kg body weight aspartate with prior injection of insulin had 28.4 +/- 12.6 necrotic neurons/section, while 4.2 +/- 1.4 necrotic neurons/section were noted in insulin treated mice given 750 mg aspartate/kg body weight. Carbohydrate and insulin treatments has only minimal effects on plasma aspartate concentrations.
authors.affiliation: Department of Oral Pathology, University of Iowa, Iowa City 52242.
authors.forename: M W
authors.initials: MW
authors.lastname: Finkelstein
authors.forename: T T
authors.initials: TT
authors.lastname: Daabees
authors.forename: L D
authors.initials: LD
authors.lastname: Stegink
authors.forename: A E
authors.initials: AE
authors.lastname: Applebaum
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001224:Aspartic Acid / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors / Q000097:blood / Q000633:toxicity*; D005947:Glucose / Q000494:pharmacology*; D005971:Glutamates / Q000097:blood; D007031:Hypothalamus / Q000187:drug effects / Q000473:pathology*; D007328:Insulin / Q000494:pharmacology*; D051379:Mice; D009336:Necrosis; D009474:Neurons / Q000166:cytology* / Q000187:drug effects; D013213:Starch / Q000494:pharmacology*
chemical_list: D005971:Glutamates; D007328:Insulin; D001224:Aspartic Acid; D013213:Starch; D005947:Glucose