Enhancement of immunoreactivity for NF-kappa B in human cerebral infarctions

The distribution of the nuclear factor-kappa B (NF-kappa B) was investigated immunohistochemically in recently infarcted areas of postmortem human brain. Previously we reported that immunoreactivity for NF-kappa B was enhanced in neurons of Alzheimer disease brain in comparison with control cases. In the present study, a similar enhancement of immunoreactivity was observed in glial cells of infarcted areas, but not in the unaffected surround. Prominent staining for NF-kappa B was seen in some astrocytes, particularly in the penumbra or border zone between ischemic and non-ischemic areas. In some cases, positively stained macrophages were also observed in affected areas. Capillary staining for NF-kappa B was weak and did not differ significantly between affected and unaffected areas. These results suggest that enhanced expression of astrocytic NF-kappa B occurs in cerebral infarcted areas.