Puliyur S. MohanKumar

Human Adenovirus 36 Induces Adiposity, Increases Insulin Sensitivity, and Alters Hypothalamic Monoamines in Rats

Objective: Human adenovirus 36 (Ad‐36) increases adiposity and reduces serum lipids in chicken, mouse, and non‐human primate models, and it is linked to obesity in sero‐epidemiological studies in humans. Involvement of the central nervous system (CNS) or adipose tissue in the mechanism of Ad‐36‐induced adiposity is unknown. The effects of Ad‐36 on adiposity and on the neuroendocrine system were investigated in a rat model.

Activation of the Stress Axis and Neurochemical Alterations in Specific Brain Areas by Concentrated Ambient Particle Exposure with Concomitant Allergic Airway Disease

Objective Exposure to ambient particulate matter (PM) has been linked to respiratory diseases in people living in urban communities. The mechanism by which PM produces these diseases is not clear. We hypothesized that PM could act on the brain directly to stimulate the stress axis and predispose individuals to these diseases. The purpose of this study was to test if exposure to PM can affect brain areas involved in the regulation of neuroendocrine functions, especially the stress axis, and to study whether the presence of preexisting allergic airway disease aggravates the stress response. Design Adult male rats (n = 8/group) with or without ovalbumin (OVA)-induced allergic airway disease were exposed to concentrated air particles containing PM with an aerodynamic diameter ≤ 2.5 μm (PM2.5) for 8 hr, generated from ambient air in an urban Grand Rapids, Michigan, community using a mobile air research laboratory (AirCARE 1). Control animals were exposed to normal air and were treated with saline. Measurements A day after PM2.5 exposure, animals were sacrificed and the brains were removed, frozen, and sectioned. The paraventricular nucleus (PVN) and other brain nuclei were micro-dissected, and the concentrations of aminergic neurotransmitters and their metabolites were measured using high-performance liquid chromatography with electrochemical detection. Serum corticosterone levels were measured using radioimmunoassay. Results A significant increase in the concentration (mean ± SE, pg/μg protein) of norepinephrine in the PVN was produced by exposure to concentrated ambient particles (CAPs) or OVA alone (12.45 ± 2.7 and 15.84 ± 2.8, respectively) or after sensitization with OVA (19.06 ± 3.8) compared with controls (7.98 ± 1.3; p < 0.05). Serum corticosterone (mean ± SE, ng/mL) was significantly elevated in the OVA + CAPs group (242.786 ± 33.315) and in the OVA-presensitized group (242.786 ± 33.315) compared with CAP exposure alone (114.55 ± 20.9). Exposure to CAPs (alone or in combination with OVA pretreatment) can activate the stress axis, and this could probably play a role in aggravating allergic airway disease.

Chronic hyperprolactinemia and changes in dopamine neurons.

The tuberoinfundibular dopaminergic (TIDA) system is known to inhibit prolactin (PRL) secretion. In young animals this system responds to acute elevations in serum PRL by increasing its activity. However, this responsiveness is lost in aging rats with chronically high serum PRL levels. The purpose of this study was to induce hyperprolactinemia in rats for extended periods of time and examine its effects on dopaminergic systems in the brain. Hyperprolactinemia was induced by treatment with haloperidol, a dopamine receptor antagonist, and Palkovits microdissection technique in combination with high-performance liquid chromatography was used to measure neurotransmitter concentrations in several areas of the brain. After 6 months of hyperprolactinemia, dopamine (DA) concentrations in the median eminence (ME) increased by 84% over the control group. Nine months of hyperprolactinemia produced a 50% increase in DA concentrations in the ME over the control group. However, DA response was lost if a 9-month long haloperidol-induced hyperprolactinemia was followed by a 1 1/2 month-long extremely high increase in serum PRL levels produced by implantation of MMQ cells under the kidney capsule. There was no change in the levels of DA, norepinephrine (NE), serotonin (5-HT), or their metabolites in the arcuate nucleus (AN), medial preoptic area (MPA), caudate putamen (CP), substantia nigra (SN), and zona incerta (ZI), except for a decrease in 5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid (5-HIAA) in the AN after 6-months of hyperprolactinemia and an increase in DA concentrations in the AN after 9-months of hyperprolactinemia. These results demonstrate that hyperprolactinemia specifically affects TIDA neurons and these effects vary, depending on the duration and intensity of hyperprolactinemia. The age-related decrease in hypothalamic dopamine function may be associated with increases in PRL secretion.

Chronic estradiol-17β exposure increases superoxide production in the rostral ventrolateral medulla and causes hypertension: Reversal by resveratrol

Women are exposed to estrogen in several forms, such as oral contraceptive pills and hormone replacement therapy. Although estrogen was believed to be cardioprotective, lately, its beneficial effects are being questioned. Recent studies indicate that oxidative stress in the rostral ventrolateral medulla (RVLM) may play a role in the development of hypertension. Therefore, we hypothesized that chronic exposure to low levels of estradiol-17β (E(2)) leads to hypertension in adult-cycling female Sprague Dawley (SD) rats potentially through generation of superoxide in the RVLM. To test this hypothesis, young adult (3 or 4 mo old) female SD rats were either sham-implanted or implanted (subcutaneously) with slow-release E(2) pellets (20 ng/day) for 90 days. A group of control and E(2)-treated animals were fed lab chow or chow containing resveratrol (0.84 g/kg of chow), an antioxidant. Rats were implanted with telemeters to continuously monitor blood pressure (BP) and heart rate (HR). At the end of treatment, the RVLM was isolated for measurements of superoxide. E(2) treatment significantly increased mean arterial pressure (mmHg) and HR (beats/min) compared with sham rats (119.6 ± 0.8 vs. 105.1 ± 0.7 mmHg and 371.7 ± 1.5 vs. 354.4 ± 1.3 beats/min, respectively; P < 0.0001). Diastolic and systolic BP were significantly increased in E(2)-treated rats compared with control animals. Superoxide levels in the RVLM increased significantly in the E(2)-treated group (0.833 ± 0.11 nmol/min·mg) compared with control (0.532 ± 0.04 nmol/min·mg; P < 0.05). Treatment with resveratrol reversed the E(2)-induced increases in BP and superoxide levels in the RVLM. In conclusion, these findings support the hypothesis that chronic exposure to low levels of E(2) induces hypertension and increases superoxide levels in the RVLM and that this effect can be reversed by resveratrol treatment.

Chronic estradiol exposure induces oxidative stress in the hypothalamus to decrease hypothalamic dopamine and cause hyperprolactinemia

Estrogens are known to cause hyperprolactinemia, most probably by acting on the tuberoinfundibular dopaminergic (TIDA) system of the hypothalamus. Dopamine (DA) produced by TIDA neurons directly inhibits prolactin secretion and, therefore, to stimulate prolactin secretion, estrogens inhibit TIDA neurons to decrease DA production. However, the mechanism by which estrogen produces this effect is not clear. In the present study, we used a paradigm involving chronic exposure to low levels of estradiol-17β (E(2)) to mimic prolonged exposures to environmental and endogenous estrogens. We hypothesized that chronic exposure to low levels of E(2) induces oxidative stress in the arcuate nucleus (AN) of the hypothalamus that contains TIDA neurons and causes nitration of tyrosine hydroxylase (TH), the rate-limiting enzyme in the synthesis of DA. This results in a significant decrease in DA and consequently, hyperprolactinemia. To investigate this, adult, intact female cycling rats were implanted with slow-release E(2) pellets (20 ng/day) for 30, 60, or 90 days and were compared with old (16-18 mo old) constant estrous (OCE) rats. Chronic E(2) exposure significantly increased the expression of glial fibrillary acidic protein and the concentrations of interleukin-1β (IL-1β) and nitrate in the AN that contains perikarya of TIDA neurons and increased nitration of TH in the median eminence (ME) that contains the terminals. These levels were comparable to those seen in OCE rats. We observed a significant decrease in DA concentrations in the ME and hyperprolactinemia in an exposure-dependent manner similar to that seen in OCE rats. It was concluded that chronic exposure to low levels of E(2) evokes oxidative stress in the AN to inhibit TIDA neuronal function, most probably leading to hyperprolactinemia.

Effects of Chronic Hyperprolactinemia on Tuberoinfundibular Dopaminergic Neurons

Abstract Prolactin (PRL) secretion is under the inhibitory regulation of the tuberoinfundibular dopaminergic (TIDA) system. Short-term elevation in PRL levels has been shown to increase the activity of TIDA neurons, however, the responsiveness of TIDA neurons to chronically elevated serum PRL levels is controversial. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of prolonged elevations of serum PRL on TIDA neuronal activity. Female Sprague-Dawley rats (2–3 months old) were ovariectomized and implanted (sc) with haloperidol (HAL), a dopamine receptor antagonist for 6 or 9 months to produce hyperprolactinemia. Ovariectomized, sham-implanted rats were used as controls. Other groups of intact rats were implanted with HAL or shamimplanted for 9 months and then were implanted with PRL-producing MMQ cells for 6 weeks to further increase circulating PRL levels. TIDA neuronal activity was measured in terms of tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) activity in the stalk-median eminence and was correlated with changes in serum PRL levels. After 6 months of treatment, TH activity in HAL-treated rats was 130% higher than that in the control rats. After 9 months of treatment, TH activity in HAL-treated rats was 81% higher than that in control rats. This increase was significantly less than the increase that occurred after 6 months of treatment. Nine months of HAL-induced hyperprolactinemia followed by implantation of PRL-producing MMQ cells, which resulted in very high levels of PRL, did not increase TH activity in the stalk-median eminence. These results demonstrate that hyperprolactinemia over a prolonged period reduces the responsiveness of TIDA neurons, and these effects vary depending on the duration and intensity of hyperprolactinemia.

Effects of chronic bromocriptine treatment on tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) mRNA expression, TH activity and median eminence dopamine concentrations in ageing rats.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the age‐related changes in the responsiveness of tuberoinfundibular dopamine (TIDA) neurones to chronic hypoprolactinemia induced by treatment with bromocriptine, a dopamine receptor agonist. In one experiment, TIDA neuronal activity after acute hypoprolactinemia or exogenous prolactin was monitored by measuring tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) activity in the stalk median eminence of middle‐aged cycling female rats (10–12u2003months), old constant oestrous rats (18–20u2003months) and old pseudopregnant rats (22–24u2003months). In another experiment, middle‐aged cycling (10–12u2003months) rats were treated with bromocriptine for 6 or 12u2003months. TH activity was measured in the stalk median eminence, TH mRNA levels were measured in the arcuate nucleus and dopamine concentrations were measured in the arcuate nucleus and median eminence. Responsiveness of TIDA neurones to exogenous prolactin and to the withdrawal of bromocriptine in these rats was also tested. While the TIDA neurones in all three age groups responded to acute hypoprolactinemia by showing a reduction in TH activity, older rats failed to respond to exogenous prolactin administration. In contrast, chronic hypoprolactinemia for 12u2003months enabled the rats to retain TIDA neuronal responsiveness to exogenous prolactin. It also decreased TIDA neuronal function as measured by dopamine concentrations in the median eminence, TH activity in the stalk median eminence and TH mRNA in the arcuate nucleus of ageing rats. The restoration of the responsiveness of these neurones to prolactin stimulation in older rats demonstrates for the first time that hypoprolactinemia produced by chronic bromocriptine treatment indeed provides a neuroprotective effect on TIDA neurones. These results indicate that maintaining a low level of neuronal activity by lowering prolactin levels may be a contributing factor in retaining the plasticity of TIDA neurones.

Responsiveness of tuberoinfundibular dopaminergic neurons to 5-hydroxytryptophan: effects of aging.

Serotonin is known to stimulate prolactin secretion by decreasing tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) activity in the tuberoinfundibular dopaminergic (TIDA) neurons. However, the effects of aging on the responsiveness of TIDA neurons to serotonin are not known. An effective way to increase serotonergic activity is to administer 5-hydroxytryptophan (5-HTP), a serotonin precursor. The present study was done to investigate the effects of 5-HTP on TIDA neuronal activity in aging animals. Middle-aged (10–12 mo), old (18–20 mo), and very old (22–24 mo) female Sprague-Dawley rats were bilaterally ovariectomized. Ten days later, they were injected iv with 50 mg/kg body wt of 5-HTP or the vehicle for 5-HTP (PBS-HCl). Twenty minutes later, m-hydroxybenzylhydrazine (NSD), a DOPA decarboxylase inhibitor, was administered. Ten minutes later, the animals were killed, and tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) activity was determined by measuring l-DOPA accumulation in the stalk median eminence by HPLC-EC. In all three groups, administration of 5-HTP increased serum prolactin levels significantly. In control middle-aged rats, TH activity (l-DOPA pg/µg protein) was 33.0 ± 5.6. Treatment with 5-HTP decreased TH activity by 60%. Similarly, 5-HTP treatment decreased TH activity by 52 and 56% in 18- to 20- and 22- to 24-mo-old rats, respectively, compared to the control rats. The magnitudes of the 5-HTP-induced decreases in TH activities in middle-aged, old, and very old rats were not different from each other. These results indicate that TIDA neuronal responsiveness to serotonin does not change with age and that 5-HTP is capable of stimulating PRL release even in very old rats.