Imaging signal transduction via arachidonic acid in the human brain during visual stimulation, by means of positron emission tomography.
BACKGROUND
Arachidonic acid (AA, 20:4n-6), an important second messenger, is released from membrane phospholipid following receptor mediated activation of phospholipase A(2) (PLA(2)). This signaling process can be imaged in brain as a regional brain AA incorporation coefficient K*.


OBJECTIVE
K* will be increased in brain visual areas of subjects submitted to visual stimulation.


METHODS
Regional values of K* were measured with positron emission tomography (PET), following the intravenous injection of [1-(11)C]AA, in 16 healthy volunteers subjected to visual stimulation at flash frequencies 2.9 Hz (8 subjects) or 7.8 Hz (8 subjects), compared with the dark (0 Hz) condition. Regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) was measured with intravenous [(15)O]water under comparable conditions.


RESULTS
During flash stimulation at 2.9 Hz or 7.8 Hz vs. 0 Hz, K* was increased significantly by 2.3-8.9% in Brodmann areas 17, 18 and 19, and in additional frontal, parietal and temporal cortical regions. rCBF was increased significantly by 3.1-22%, often in comparable regions. Increments at 7.8 Hz often exceeded those at 2.9 Hz for both K* and rCBF. Decrements in both parameters also were produced, particularly in frontal brain regions.


CONCLUSIONS
AA plays a role in signaling processes provoked by visual stimulation, since visual stimulation at flash frequencies of 2.9 and 7.8 Hz compared to 0 Hz modifies both K* for AA and rCBF in visual and related areas of the human brain. The two-stimulus condition paradigm of this study might be used with PET to image effects of other functional activations and of drugs on brain signaling via AA.
Esposito
Giuseppe
G
Brain Physiology and Metabolism Section, Bldg. 9, Rm. 1S128, National Institute on Aging, National Institutes of Health, 9 Memorial Drive, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA.
Giovacchini
Giampiero
G
Der
Margaret
M
Liow
Jeih-San
JS
Bhattacharjee
Abesh K
AK
Ma
Kaizong
K
Herscovitch
Peter
P
Channing
Michael
M
Eckelman
William C
WC
Hallett
Mark
M
Carson
Richard E
RE
Rapoport
Stanley I
SI
D000328:Adult; D016718:Arachidonic Acid / Q000502:physiology*; D001921:Brain / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000502:physiology; D002250:Carbon Radioisotopes; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007091:Image Processing, Computer-Assisted; D008297:Male; D010741:Phospholipases A / Q000378:metabolism; D010775:Photic Stimulation; D049268:Positron-Emission Tomography / Q000379:methods*; D011859:Radiography; D015290:Second Messenger Systems; D015398:Signal Transduction
D002250:Carbon Radioisotopes; D016718:Arachidonic Acid; D010741:Phospholipases A