Neuronal stress response and neuronal cell damage after cardiocirculatory arrest in rats

Cardiocirculatory arrest is the most common clinical cause of global cerebral ischemia. We studied neuronal cell damage and neuronal stress response after cardiocirculatory arrest and subsequent cardiopulmonary resuscitation in rats. The temporospatial cellular reactions were assessed by terminal deoxynucleotidyltransferase-mediated dUTP-biotin nick end-labeling (TUNEL) staining of DNA fragments, in situ hybridization (heat shock protein hsp70; immediate early genes c-fos and c-jun), and immunocytochemical (HSP70; and myeloperoxidase, specific marker of polymorphonuclear leukocytes [PMNL]) techniques. Cardiac arrest of 10 minutes' duration was induced in mechanically ventilated male Sprague-Dawley rats anesthetized with nitrous oxide and halothane. After cardiopulmonary resuscitation, animals were allowed to reperfuse spontaneously for 6 hours, 24 hours, 3 days, and 7 days (n = 6 per group). Five sham-operated animals were controls. The TUNEL staining revealed an early onset degeneration in the thalamic reticular nucleus (TRN) at 6 hours that peaked at 3 days. In contrast, degeneration was delayed in the hippocampal CA1 sector, showing an onset at 3 days and a further increase in the number of TUNEL-positive cells at 7 days. A minor portion of TUNEL-positive nuclei in the CA1 sector showed condensed chromatin and apoptotic bodies, whereas all nuclei in the TRN revealed more diffuse staining. After 6 hours of reperfusion, levels of mRNA for hsp70 and c-jun were elevated in circumscribed areas of cortex, in all hippocampal areas, and in most nuclei of thalamus, but not in the TRN. After 24 hours, a strong expression of mRNA for hsp70 and c-jun could be observed in the second layer of the cortex and in hippocampal CA1 sector; hsp70 also was observed in hippocampal CA3 sector. Some animals showed expression of hsp70 and c-jun in the dentate gyrus. After 3 days, hsp70 and c-jun were detected mainly in the CA1 sector of hippocampus. At 7 days, mRNA for both returned to control values. Therefore, delayed cell degeneration in the CA1 sector corresponds to a prolonged expression of hsp70 and c-jun in this area. In situ hybridization studies for c-fos revealed a strong signal in CA3 and dentate gyrus and a less prominent signal in TRN at 6 hours. At 24 hours, CA4 and amygdalae were positive, whereas at 3 and 7 days, the signal reached control levels; no prolonged or secondary expression was observed in the CA1 sector. Immunohistochemical study confirmed translation of HSP70 in various areas corresponding to the detection of mRNA, including the CA1 sector. The number of PMNL increased significantly at 6 hours and 7 days after cardiac arrest; PMNL were distributed disseminately and were not regionally associated with neuronal cell damage. The current data support the view that CA1 neurons might undergo an apoptosis-associated death after cardiac arrest, but PMNL are not directly involved in this process. The marked differences in the time course and the characteristics of TUNEL staining and the neuronal stress response in CA1 sector and TRN point to different mechanisms of neuronal injury in the two selectively vulnerable areas.