[Changes in inflammatory cascade response and its implication during cerebral ischemia/reperfusion in aged rats].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the changes in expression of tumor necrosis factor-alpha(TNF-alpha), vascular cellular adhesive molecule-1 (VCAM-1), intercellular adhesion molecular-1 (ICAM-1) and its mRNA expression, and the pathogenetic mechanism of cerebral ischemia/reperfusion(I/R) in elderly. METHODS: Thirty six male young SD rats (5-6 months old) and 36 male aged SD rats (20-21 months old) were randomly divided into young sham operated group, young model group, aged sham operated group and aged model group, respectively. The two model groups were randomly divided into ischemia 3 hours (I 3 h), I/R 1, 3, 6, 12 days groups. There were 6 rats in each group. Focal cerebral I/R model was replicated with middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO). The changes of the nervous dysfunction score, the water content of cerebral constitution and the expression of TNF-alpha, VCAM-1, ICAM-1 and ICAM-1 mRNA were observed at each time point. RESULTS: The expression of TNF-alpha in the aged sham operated group were higher than that of the young sham operated group. The nervous dysfunction score (I 3 h and I/R 1-12 d), the water content of cerebral constitution (I/R 1-6 d), the expression of TNF-alpha (I 3 h and I/R 1-6 d), VCAM-1 (I 3 h and I/R 1 d), ICAM-1 (I 3 h and I/R 1-6 d) and ICAM-1 mRNA (I 3 h and I/R 1-12 d) in young model group and aged model group were higher than those of the young sham operated group and the aged sham operated group respectively. The nervous dysfunction score (I 3 h, I/R 6 d), the expression of TNF-alpha (I/R 1, 3 d), VCAM-1 (I/R 3, 6 d), ICAM-1 (I 3 h, I/R 1 d) and ICAM-1 mRNA (I/R 1-6 d) in aged model group were higher than that of young model group. CONCLUSION: The cerebral I/R injury is correlated with the up regulation of TNF-alpha, VCAM-1,ICAM-1 and its mRNA expression. The cerebral I/R injury of aged rats is more serious than that of young rats which might be associated with up regulation of TNF-alpha, adhesion molecules expression with aging.