Enhanced expression of immediate-early genes in mouse hippocampus after trimethyltin treatment.
Immediate-early genes (IEGs) are transiently and rapidly activated in response to various cellular stimuli. IEGs mediate diverse functions during pathophysiologic events by regulating cellular signal transduction. We investigated the temporal expression of several IEGs, including c-fos, early growth response protein-1 (Egr-1), and activity-regulated cytoskeleton-associated protein (Arc), in trimethyltin (TMT)-induced hippocampal neurodegeneration. Mice (7 weeks old, C57BL/6) administered TMT (2.6mg/kg intraperitoneally) presented severe neurodegenerative lesions in the dentate gyrus (DG) and showed behavioral seizure activity on days 1-4 post-treatment, after which the lesions and behavior recovered spontaneously over time. c-fos, Egr-1, and Arc mRNA and protein levels significantly increased in the mouse hippocampus after TMT treatment. Immunohistochemical analysis showed that nuclear c-fos expression increased mainly in the DG, whereas nuclear Egr-1 expression was increased extensively in cornu ammonis (CA) 1, CA3, and the DG after TMT treatment. Increased Arc levels were detected in the cellular somata/dendrites of the hippocampal subregions after TMT treatment. Therefore, we suggest that increased IEGs are associated with TMT-induced pathological events in mouse hippocampus.
Department of Veterinary Anatomy, College of Veterinary Medicine and BK21 Plus Project Team, Animal Medical Institute, Chonnam National University, Gwangju 61186, South Korea.
Sueun
S
Lee
Department of Veterinary Anatomy, College of Veterinary Medicine and BK21 Plus Project Team, Animal Medical Institute, Chonnam National University, Gwangju 61186, South Korea.
Sohi
S
Kang
Department of Veterinary Anatomy, College of Veterinary Medicine and BK21 Plus Project Team, Animal Medical Institute, Chonnam National University, Gwangju 61186, South Korea.
Juhwan
J
Kim
Department of Veterinary Anatomy, College of Veterinary Medicine and BK21 Plus Project Team, Animal Medical Institute, Chonnam National University, Gwangju 61186, South Korea.
Seongwook
S
Yoon
Department of Veterinary Anatomy, College of Veterinary Medicine and BK21 Plus Project Team, Animal Medical Institute, Chonnam National University, Gwangju 61186, South Korea.
Sung-Ho
SH
Kim
Department of Veterinary Anatomy, College of Veterinary Medicine and BK21 Plus Project Team, Animal Medical Institute, Chonnam National University, Gwangju 61186, South Korea. Electronic address: moonc@chonnam.ac.kr.
Changjong
C
Moon
D000818:Animals; D018891:Dentate Gyrus / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000378:metabolism; D017781:Genes, Immediate-Early / Q000187:drug effects*; D006624:Hippocampus / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000378:metabolism*; D008297:Male; D008810:Mice, Inbred C57BL; D009419:Nerve Tissue Proteins / Q000378:metabolism; D009474:Neurons / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000378:metabolism; D016760:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-fos / Q000378:metabolism; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000378:metabolism; D014298:Trimethyltin Compounds / Q000494:pharmacology*
D009419:Nerve Tissue Proteins; D016760:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-fos; D012333:RNA, Messenger; D014298:Trimethyltin Compounds; C046488:trimethyltin
Hippocampus; Immediate–early gene; Neurotoxicity; Trimethyltin