Trimethyltin increases interleukin (IL)-1 alpha, IL-6 and tumor necrosis factor alpha mRNA levels in rat hippocampus.

Within the central nervous system (CNS), cytokines are though to have active roles in pathophysiological changes seen in various neurological diseases and trauma. The present study was undertaken to examine the early response of pro-inflammatory cytokines following exposure to a specific neurotoxicant (trimethyltin; TMT). mRNA levels for interleukin (IL)-1 alpha, IL-1 beta, IL-6 and tumor necrosis factor (TNF) alpha were measured in the hippocampus of adult male Long-Evans hooded rats following an acute injection of trimethyltin hydroxide (8 mg TMT/kg body weight). At various times following exposure (6 h to 8 days), hippocampal tissues were excised and relative changes in cytokine mRNA levels were assessed by reverse transcription and polymerase chain reaction. IL-1 alpha, IL-6 and TNF alpha mRNA levels in the hippocampus increased within 6 h and remained elevated for 8 days. Quantitative analysis of mRNA transcripts revealed a two-fold increase in both IL-6 and TNF alpha within 6 h and a continued elevation of TNF alpha to 9-fold by 12 h. Within 96 h, glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) mRNA levels were elevated in the hippocampus. Histological examination showed sparse individual neuronal necrosis at this time in both the pyramidal and granule cell regions with no increase in astrocyte GFAP immunoreactivity. However, an early, 24 h, response of microglial cells was indicated by increased lectin binding. This morphological profile progressed over time to a profound neuronal loss in the CA3-4 granule cell layer and marked astrocyte hypertrophy. The onset of pro-inflammatory cytokine mRNA expression appears to be temporally associated with histological evidence of elevated microglia in the hippocampus. It is proposed that microglia and pro-inflammatory cytokines play a modulatory role in the early stages of TMT-induced neurotoxicity.