title: Mouse strains differ in their susceptibility to poststroke infections.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Severe infections, in particular pneumonia, have a major impact on the clinical management and outcome of stroke patients. In a mouse model we have recently demonstrated that stroke induces immunodepression which can result in life-threatening infections. Here, we investigated whether the susceptibility to infections after stroke is strain dependent.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Mice from 129SV, C57/B6, and Balb/C strains were subjected to experimental stroke by filament occlusion of the middle cerebral artery (MCAO) for 60 min. Infarct volumes were measured 3 days after MCAO. Microbiological assessment was based on cultures of bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL), lung tissue and blood of animals obtained 3 days after stroke. Three days after stroke 129SV mice did not only develop bacterial chest infection, but also had a strongly increased susceptibility to bacteremia. In contrast, C57BL/6 and Balb/C mice acquired bacterial lung infections only. In addition, bacterial load in BAL was significantly higher in 129SV mice than in the other mice strains. These differences in susceptibility to infection did not correlate with infarct volumes.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Stroke-associated pneumonia developed in three commonly used mouse strains while severity of infections differed between strains. Since infections affect outcome, monitoring of infections is highly relevant for the interpretation of results in experimental stroke research.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, Charité Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Berlin, Germany.
authors.forename: Olaf
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Schulte-Herbrüggen
authors.forename: Juliane
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Klehmet
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Quarcoo
authors.forename: Christian
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Meisel
authors.forename: Andreas
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Meisel
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001831:Body Temperature / Q000276:immunology; D001921:Brain / Q000276:immunology* / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D007108:Immune Tolerance / Q000276:immunology*; D007113:Immunity, Innate / Q000276:immunology*; D016867:Immunocompromised Host / Q000276:immunology; D020244:Infarction, Middle Cerebral Artery / Q000150:complications / Q000276:immunology / Q000503:physiopathology; D008168:Lung / Q000276:immunology / Q000382:microbiology / Q000503:physiopathology; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D008807:Mice, Inbred BALB C; D008810:Mice, Inbred C57BL; D015213:Neuroimmunomodulation / Q000276:immunology*; D018410:Pneumonia, Bacterial / Q000276:immunology* / Q000503:physiopathology; D013045:Species Specificity; D020521:Stroke / Q000150:complications* / Q000276:immunology* / Q000503:physiopathology; D015996:Survival Rate