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Published on: December 6, 2016
Substance P in the midbrains of SIDS victims and its correlation with sleep apnea
Toshiko Sawaguchi1, Yuri Ozawa, Franco Patricia
1Department of Legal Medicine, Tokyo Women's Medical University School of Medicine, 8-1 Kawada-cho, Shinjuku, Tokyo 162-8666, Japan. tsawagu@research.twmu.ac.jp
Insights
This study found no link between Substance P levels in the brainstem and sleep apnea in Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) cases. These findings do not support a role for Substance P in SIDS pathophysiology related to apnea.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Pediatric Pathology
- Sleep Medicine
Background:
- Substance P (SP) is a neuropeptide involved in pain and respiration.
- Previous reports suggested increased SP in SIDS brains, prompting this investigation.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the correlation between Substance P and sleep apnea in infants.
- To determine if SP levels in specific brainstem nuclei are associated with apnea in Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS).
Main Methods:
- Prospective study of 27,000 infants, analyzing sleep apnea in 38 deceased infants (26 SIDS).
- Immunohistochemistry for SP in brainstem nuclei (trigeminal and parabrachial nuclei).
- Correlation analysis between SP fiber density and sleep apnea frequency/duration.
Main Results:
- No significant correlation was found between SP fiber density in the studied brainstem regions and the frequency or duration of sleep apnea in SIDS cases.
- SP levels in the nucleus spinal and mesencephalic nervi trigemini and nucleus parabranchialis were not associated with apnea data.
Conclusions:
- The study found no significant association between Substance P and apnea data in SIDS.
- These results contradict the hypothesis linking SP and apnea in the pathophysiology of SIDS.
Background:
Substance P (SP) is a neuropeptide transmitter found in sensory neurons of the central nervous system and related to pain sensation and respiratory regulation. Some reports claim an increase in SP in the brains of SIDS victims, so the correlation between SP and sleep apnea was investigated here.
Materials And Methods:
Among 27,000 infants studied prospectively to characterize their sleep-wake behavior, 38 infants died under 6 months of age, which included 26 cases of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS). All the infants had been recorded during one night in a pediatric sleep laboratory some 3 to 12 weeks before death. The frequency and duration of sleep apnea were analyzed. Brainstem material was collected and immunohistochemistry for SP was carried out. The density of SP positive fibers was measured in the nucleus spinal and mesencephalic nervi trigemini and nucleus parabranchialis in the brainstem of abovementioned cases. Correlation analyses were carried out between the density of SP and the data of sleep apnea.
Results:
There was no SIDS specific correlation of SP through the above-listed parts of the midbrain with frequency and duration of sleep apnea.
Conclusions:
There was no significant association between the SP findings and apnea data in SIDS; this is not in agreement with the association of apnea in pathophysiology of SIDS.
