Relationship of substance P and gliosis in medulla oblongata in neonatal sudden infant death syndrome.
Substance P and glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) immunohistochemistry was applied to the medulla of neonatal infants who died of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS). A quantitative analysis of cells demonstrating immunoreactivity to GFAP and substance P in 15 neonatal SIDS cases revealed increased GFAP immunoreactivity in the reticular formation, the dorsal vagal nucleus, and the solitary nucleus and an increase in substance P immunoreactivity in the spinal trigeminal nucleus and the solitary nucleus as compared with that in age-matched controls. GFAP immunopositivity suggests astrogliosis which implies a pathologic insult to neurons in the area of astrogliosis. The failure of neurons in these sites to show enhanced substance P immunopositivity may indirectly indicate altered neurons. Further study of prenatal events may be of importance in clarifying the pathogenesis of neonatal SIDS.
Obonai
T
T
Department of Mental Retardation and Birth Defect Research, National Institute of Neuroscience, Tokyo, Japan.
Takashima
S
S
Becker
L E
LE
Asanuma
M
M
Mizuta
R
R
Horie
H
H
Tanaka
J
J
D016009:Chi-Square Distribution; D005904:Glial Fibrillary Acidic Protein / Q000378:metabolism; D005911:Gliosis / Q000473:pathology*; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008526:Medulla Oblongata / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology*; D013373:Substance P / Q000378:metabolism*; D013398:Sudden Infant Death / Q000473:pathology*
D005904:Glial Fibrillary Acidic Protein; D013373:Substance P