Effect of general anesthesia drugs on GFAP/Iba-1 expression: a meta-analysis

Glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) is a marker associated with astrocyte activation and plays a role in various pathologic processes, including traumatic brain injury, stroke, and neurodegenerative diseases. Interacting boson approximation (Iba-1) is a marker protein for microglia, which are important in neuroinflammatory responses. This meta-analysis aimed to investigate the impact of general anesthetics on the expression of GFAP and Iba-1 in animal models. A meta-analysis was conducted using databases such as PubMed, EMBASE, Springer, and Web of Science. The quality of the selected publications was estimated using the SYRCLE guidelines to ensure credibility and consistency of the research. Continuous variables were measured using mean difference or standardized mean difference (SMD), with a 95% confidence interval (CI) calculated. Ten randomized controlled animal experiments were included in this analysis, utilizing different general anesthetics such as sevoflurane and propofol compared to untreated control groups. The results consistently demonstrated a significant increase in GFAP (SMD = 0.41, 95% CI: 0.09, 0.72, P = 0.01) and Iba-1 (SMD = 0.43, 95% CI: 0.04, 0.83, P = 0.03) expression in the general anesthetic-treated groups, suggesting a neuroinflammatory response induced by these agents. Assessment of publication bias revealed no significant bias in the included studies. This meta-analysis highlights the impact of general anesthetics on GFAP expression in animal models, emphasizing the importance of understanding the neuroinflammatory response associated with anesthesia administration. Further research is warranted to elucidate the underlying molecular pathways and explore possible therapeutic interventions to mitigate adverse effects associated with anesthesia administration.