title: Effects of the short chain sugar acid 2-buten-4-olide on the hypothalamo-pituitary-adrenal axis in normal and adjuvant-induced arthritic rats.
abstract: The effects of intraperitoneal (i.p.) administration of 2-buten-4-olide (2-B4O), an endogenous sugar acid, on the hypothalamo-adenohypophysial system were examined in Lewis rats that were normal and in adjuvant-induced arthritic (AA) rats. In comparison with vehicle-treated rats, the plasma corticosterone and c-fos mRNA levels in the paraventricular nucleus (PVN) of normal rats increased significantly after i.p. administration of 2-B4O. Dual immunostaining revealed that almost all corticotrophin-releasing factor (CRF)-immunopositive neurones in the parvocellular division of the PVN exhibited Fos-like immunoreactivity (LI) 120 min after i.p. administration of 2-B4O (100 mg/kg). In the AA rats, repeated i.p. administration of 2-B4O (100 mg/kg) after immunisation significantly suppressed the expression of clinical symptoms and significantly increased plasma concentrations of corticosterone. Further, repeated i.p. administration of 2-B4O significantly increased CRF mRNA levels in the PVN and pro-opiomelanocortin mRNA levels in the anterior pituitary; however, they did not change arginine vasopressin mRNA levels in the parvocellular division of the PVN. These results suggest that i.p. administration of 2-B4O activates the hypothalamo-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis via the activation of CRF neurones in the PVN, and the activation of the HPA axis by i.p. administration of 2-B4O may be associated with the inhibition of AA in rats.
authors.affiliation: Department of Physiology, School of Medicine, University of Occupational and Environmental Health, 1-1 Iseigaoka, Yahatanishi-ku, Kitakyushu 807-8555, Japan.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kawasaki
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Onaka
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Saito
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Hashimoto
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Suzuki
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Otsubo
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Fujihara
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Okimoto
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Ohnishi
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Nakamura
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Ueta
mesh_terms: D015107:4-Butyrolactone / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000494:pharmacology; D000276:Adjuvants, Immunologic; D000818:Animals; D001067:Appetite Depressants / Q000494:pharmacology; D001127:Arginine Vasopressin / Q000378:metabolism; D001169:Arthritis, Experimental / Q000097:blood / Q000378:metabolism; D003345:Corticosterone / Q000097:blood; D003346:Corticotropin-Releasing Hormone / Q000378:metabolism; D007030:Hypothalamo-Hypophyseal System / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000378:metabolism; D007274:Injections, Intraperitoneal; D008297:Male; D010913:Pituitary-Adrenal System / Q000187:drug effects*; D016760:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-fos / Q000378:metabolism; D051381:Rats; D011917:Rats, Inbred Lew
chemical_list: D000276:Adjuvants, Immunologic; D001067:Appetite Depressants; D016760:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-fos; D001127:Arginine Vasopressin; C004511:butenolide; D003346:Corticotropin-Releasing Hormone; D015107:4-Butyrolactone; D003345:Corticosterone