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Biomedical subjects

U Koedel

Publications and source records attributed to U Koedel.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

Reduction of intracranial pressure by nimodipine in experimental pneumococcal meningitis.

OBJECTIVE: In this study, we investigated the effect of the calcium channel blocker nimodipine on the pathophysiologic alterations during experimental pneumococcal meningitis in rats. DESIGN: Prospective, controlled trial. SETTING: University center, animal laboratory. SUBJECTS: A total of 37 adult male Wistar rats (290-360 g). INTERVENTIONS: Meningitis was induced by the intracisternal injection of pneumococci. Anaesthetized animals were treated with nimodipine (30 microg/kg/hr iv) either 15 mins before (pretreatment) or 5 hrs after (posttreatment) pneumococcal challenge. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: Treatment with nimodipine (30 microg/kg/hr iv) significantly decreased the pneumococci-induced rise in intracranial pressure irrespective of the time of administration. Moreover, pretreament with nimodipine also significantly reduced the pneumococci-induced increase in cerebrospinal fluid white blood cell counts. To ascertain possible mechanisms of the beneficial effect, we investigated the influence of nimodipine on reactive oxygen species (ROS) and cytokine production. By using lucigenin-enhanced chemiluminescence, we found that nimodipine inhibited the pneumococci-induced production of ROS in human whole blood samples. Moreover, nimodipine significantly reduced the pneumococci-induced increase in the interleukin-6 concentrations in the cerebrospinal fluid. CONCLUSION: Our results demonstrate that nimodipine decreases the intracranial pressure during experimental pneumococcal meningitis, possibly by mechanisms including the reduction of ROS and interleukin-6 production.

Animals↗

Upregulation of matrix metalloproteinase-9 in the cerebrospinal fluid of patients with acute Lyme neuroborreliosis.

It was investigated (1) whether metalloproteinase-9 (MMP-9), MMP-3, and tissue inhibitor of matrix metalloproteinase-1 (TIMP-1, the natural tissue inhibitor of MMP-9) are increased in the CSF of patients with Lyme neuroborreliosis and (2) whether macrophages can express MMP-9 when stimulated with Borrelia burgdorferi. Zymography showed MMP-9 activity in 26 of 31 (84%) CSF samples from patients with acute stage 2 Lyme neuroborreliosis, but not in 20 controls with non-inflammatory neurological disorders. Activity of MMP-2 was detected in all CSF samples in both patients with neuroborreliosis and controls, suggesting a constitutive release of MMP-2. Using enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) MMP-3 (which can activate MMP-9) was detected in low concentrations in the CSF of 13 of 29 patients with neuroborreliosis, but not in controls. TIMP-1 was increased twofold in CSF samples from patients with neuroborreliosis in comparison with the controls. MMP-9 activity was induced in vitro in a mouse macrophage cell line (RAW 264.7) when stimulated with two different genospecies of B burgdorferi (B garinii, B afzelii ). This MMP-9 activity was reduced in a dose dependent manner when macrophages stimulated with B burgdorferi were coincubated with NF-kappaB SN50, a cell permeable peptide which inhibits the translocation of NF-kappaB into the nucleus of stimulated cells. The data show that (1) MMP-9 activity is present in the CSF of patients with neuroborreliosis, (2) macrophages stimulated with B burgdorferi are a possible source of MMP-9 increase, and (3) activation of NF-kappaB may play a part in the upregulation of MMP-9 by B burgdorferi.

Acute Disease↗

HIV type 1 Nef protein is a viral factor for leukocyte recruitment into the central nervous system.

Recombinant HIV-1 Nef protein, but not Tat, gp120, and gp160, provoked leukocyte recruitment into the CNS in a rat model. The strong reduction of bioactivity by heat treatment of Nef, and the blocking effect of the mAb 2H12, which recognizes the carboxy-terminal amino acid (aa) residues 171-190 (but not of mAb 3E6, an anti-Nef Ab of the same isotype, which maps the aa sequence 168-175, as well as a mixture of mAbs to CD4) provided evidence for the specificity of the observed Nef effects. Using a modified Boyden chamber technique, Nef exhibited chemotactic activity on mononuclear cells in vitro. Coadministration of the anti-Nef mAb 2H12, as well as treatment of Nef by heat inhibited Nef-induced chemotaxis. Besides soluble Nef, chemotaxis was also induced by a Nef-expressing human astrocytoma cell line, but not by control cells. These data suggest a direct chemotactic activity of soluble Nef. The detection of elevated levels of IL-6, TNF-alpha, and IFN-gamma in rat cerebrospinal fluid 6 h after intracisternal Nef injection hint at the additional involvement of indirect mechanisms in Nef-induced leukocyte migration into rat CNS. These data propose a mechanism by which HIV-1 Nef protein may be essential for AIDS neuropathogenesis, as a mediator of the recruitment of leukocytes that may serve as vehicles of the virus and perpetrators for disease through their production of neurotoxins.

Animals↗

Superoxide production by primary rat cerebral endothelial cells in response to pneumococci.

Animal studies of experimental bacterial meningitis have provided evidence for an involvement of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in the pathophysiology of this disease. Using a lucigenin-enhanced chemiluminescence (CL) method, we tested whether primary rat cerebral endothelial cells can be induced to release ROS upon stimulation with pneumococci. In addition, we determined CSF levels of two markers of lipid peroxidation in patients with bacterial meningitis, compared to patients with viral meningitis and noninflammatory neurological disorders. Malondialdehyde/4-hydroxynonenal concentrations were significantly elevated in CSF samples obtained from patients with bacterial meningitis (23.12+/-5.47 microM), as compared to both control groups (5.43+/-0.18 microM and 7.80+/-0.33 microM, respectively). Cerebromicrovascular endothelial cells, granulocytes, and the macrophage cell line RAW 264.7 (but not astrocytes and neuron-like cells) produced an increase in CL intensity after stimulation with pneumococci. The peak value produced by endothelial cells (500+/-83 cpm) was significantly lower than the maximum CL response in macrophages (1386+/-142 cpm; p<0.05). After addition of superoxide dismutase (SOD), the CL signal returned to baseline values. Equal to the CL technique, nitroblue tetrazolium (NBT) staining of RAW 264.7 showed SOD-inhibitable formazan precipitation when stimulated with pneumococci. In conclusion, this study suggests an important role of endothelial cells in the pathophysiology of bacterial meningitis-namely as a source for ROS production.

Acridines↗

Identification of a T cell chemotactic factor in the cerebrospinal fluid of HIV-1-infected individuals as interferon-gamma inducible protein 10.

Central nervous system (CNS) involvement is a prominent feature of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV-1) infection. Monocytes and CD4+ T cells traverse the blood brain barrier (BBB), and serve as vehicles for the virus and perpetrators for brain pathology by their production of neurotoxins. In the present study cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) samples from HIV-1-infected patients were analyzed for the presence of chemotactic factors. All 36 CSF samples from the patients were positive for the CXC chemokine interferon-gamma inducible protein (IP-10), which was not detected in CSF samples of 14 controls. The IP-10 concentrations were higher in HIV-1-infected patients with HIV-1 associated neurologic disorders than in those without neurological deficits. In contrast to IP-10, other chemotactic factors including the CC chemokines MCP-1, MIP-1alpha, MIP-1beta and RANTES and the cytokines IL-15 and IL-16 were either not detected or increased in only less than 30% of the patients. Unlike the CSF samples of controls, all CSF samples from HIV-1-infected patients induced chemotaxis of T cells activated with IL-2. The significance of IP-10 as a T cell chemotactic cytokine in HIV-1-infected CSF is shown by (1) the correlation of the IP-10 levels with the extent of T cell chemotaxis, (2) the neutralization of T cell chemotaxis by anti-IP-10 antibodies and (3) the correlation of the chemotactic response of CSF samples on activated T cells and the CSF white cell count in the patients. Our data provide evidence that IP-10 contributes to the accumulation of activated T cells in the CSF compartment in HIV-1-infected individuals.

AIDS Dementia Complex↗

Acute Meningitis.

Recent major epidemiologic trends in bacterial meningitis include a dramatic decline in the incidence of Haemophilus influenzae meningitis since the introduction of the protein-conjugated H. influenzae vaccines, and a worldwide increase in infections with antibiotic-resistant strains of bacterial pathogens. Cases of meningitis caused by resistant strains require an alternative therapeutic strategy. Animal studies have identified inflammatory mediators, eg, chemokines, excitatory amino acids, and endothelins, which are involved in the pathophysiology of bacterial meningitis. There is increasing evidence that reactive oxygen species (ROS), reactive nitrogen species, peroxynitrite, and matrix metalloproteinases contribute to brain damage during bacterial meningitis. The cytotoxic effects of ROS and peroxynitrite include the initiation of lipid peroxidation and the induction of DNA single-strand breakage. Damaged DNA activates poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP). Recent experimental data suggest that lipid peroxidation and PARP activation play a role in the development of meningitis-associated intracranial complications and brain injury. Agents that interfere with the production of ROS and peroxynitrite, and interfere with lipid peroxidation and PARP activation, may represent novel, therapeutic strategies by which meningitis-associated brain damage can be limited, therefore improving the outcome of this serious disease.

Journal Article↗

Models of experimental bacterial meningitis. Role and limitations.

The seriousness of bacterial meningitis has encouraged the development of animal models that characterize complex pathogenetic and pathophysiologic mechanisms, provide evaluation of pharmacokinetic and antimicrobial effects of antibiotics (especially since the worldwide emergence of multiresistant bacteria), and establish new adjuvant treatment strategies (e.g., use of anti-inflammatory agents). The information obtained from an animal model depends on the site of inoculation. For example, using intranasal, intravenous, subcutaneous, or intraperitoneal inoculation, it is the bacterial and host factors that determine the development of bacteremia and the potential for a pathogen to invade the central nervous system that primarily are studied. In contrast, experimental models using direct inoculation into the cerebrospinal fluid can reliably produce lethal infections over a predictable time course. Furthermore, because adult animals will not reliably develop meningitis after intranasal or intraperitoneal challenge, infant animals are used. Because these models bypass the natural dissemination of bacteria from the intravascular compartment to the central nervous system, the pathogenesis is artificial. These models, however, are extremely useful for the study of pathogen and host factors leading to meningeal inflammation and resulting complications, and for evaluating potentially useful agents for treatment therapy. During the past decade, the design of clinical studies has been stimulated by findings obtained from these animal models.

Anesthetics↗

Role of peroxynitrite as a mediator of pathophysiological alterations in experimental pneumococcal meningitis.

This study investigated the role of peroxynitrite in an adult rat model of pneumococcal meningitis. Immunohistochemically, nitrotyrosine residues, as a marker for peroxynitrite formation, were detected perivascularly and in proximity to inflammatory cells in the subarachnoid space. Nitrotyrosine immunoreactivity was colocalized with blood-brain barrier breaching, which was visualized by fluorescence microscopy after intravenous application of Evans blue. Treatment of infected rats with uric acid (300 mg/kg intraperitoneally), a scavenger of peroxynitrite, significantly attenuated intracranial pressure, cerebrospinal fluid white blood cell count, and blood-brain barrier leakage, as indicated by Evans blue concentration in the cerebrospinal fluid (21.6+/-9.3 mm Hg, 5776+/-1790 cells/microL, 9.7+/-6.4 microgram/mL in infected, untreated rats vs. 7.2+/-1.6 mm Hg, 2004+/-904 cells/microL, 1.1+/-1.0 microgram/mL infected, uric acid-treated rats, mean+/-SD, P<.05). These data suggest that peroxynitrite plays a central role in mediating pathophysiological alterations during bacterial meningitis.

Animals↗

Differential expression of matrix metalloproteinases in bacterial meningitis.

Matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) are implicated in the pathogenesis of various inflammatory diseases of the central nervous system. Evidence is accumulating that gelatinase B (MMP-9) might be involved in the pathogenesis of meningitis, but the spectrum of different MMPs involved in the inflammatory reaction of this disease has not been determined. We investigated the temporal and spatial mRNA expression pattern of gelatinase B in experimental meningococcal meningitis in rats. In contrast to controls, increased mRNA levels with peak values 6 h after injection with menigococci were found in brain specimens of the animals. Elevated MMP-9 mRNA expression was accompanied by enhanced proteolytic activity, as demonstrated by gelatin zymography, and positive immunoreactivity. The mRNA expression pattern of six other MMPs was investigated. Collagenase-3 and stromelysin-1 mRNAs were also found to be upregulated. In contrast, mRNA levels for gelatinase A, matrilysin, stromelysin-2 and stromelysin-3 remained unchanged. As evidenced by significantly increased intracranial pressure and by leakage of intravenously injected Evans blue through the blood vessel walls into the brain parenchyma, the animals injected with meningococci revealed signs of blood-brain barrier disruption. Augmented proteolytic activity of MMP-9 could also be demonstrated in CSF samples obtained from patients with bacterial meningitis, underlining the clinical relevance of our experimental findings. Our data indicate that gelatinase B, collagenase-3 and stromelysin-1 are selectively upregulated in bacterial meningitis and thus may contribute to the pathogenesis of this infectious disease of the central nervous system.

Animals↗

Oxidative stress in bacterial meningitis.

Fifty years after the advent of antibiotics for clinical use, the rates of morbidity and mortality associated with bacterial meningitis remain high. The unfavourable clinical outcome is often due to intracranial complications including cerebrovascular insults, raised intracranial pressure, hydrocephalus, and brain edema. Reactive oxygen species (ROS) are known effector molecules in the antimicrobial armature of polymorphonuclear and mononuclear phagocytes. However, over the last decade, there has been a substantial body of work implicating a central role of ROS in the development of intracranial complications and brain damage in bacterial meningitis. Recently, it also became evident that reactive nitrogen species (RNS), especially nitric oxide, are important mediators of meningitis-associated pathophysiological changes, at least during the early phase of the disease. There is now substantial evidence that much of the oxidative injury associated by simultaneous production of superoxide and nitric oxide is mediated by the strong oxidant peroxynitrite. ROS and peroxynitrite can be cytotoxic via a number of independent mechanisms. Their cytotoxic effects include initiation of lipid peroxidation and induction of DNA single strand breakage. Damaged DNA activates poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP). Recent experimental data propose a role of lipid peroxidation and PARP activation in the development of meningitis-associated intracranial complications and brain injury. Agents which interfere with the production of ROS and peroxynitrite, as well as with PARP activation and lipid peroxidation may represent novel, therapeutic strategies to limit meningitis-associated brain damage, and, thus, to improve the outcome of this serious disease.

Animals↗

Matrix metalloproteinases contribute to the blood-brain barrier disruption during bacterial meningitis.

In this study, we investigated the involvement of matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) in the pathophysiology of bacterial meningitis. By using an enzyme immunoassay, high concentrations of MMP-9 were detected in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) of adult patients with bacterial meningitis but not in controls, and in patients with Guillain-Barré syndrome. Moreover, we observed significantly elevated concentrations of the tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinase-1 (TIMP-1) in the CSF of patients with bacterial meningitis, compared with controls. In a rat model of meningococcal meningitis, intracisternal injection of heat-killed meningococci caused a disruption of the blood-brain barrier (BBB), an increase in intracranial pressure, and CSF pleocytosis paralleled by the occurrence of MMP-9 activity in the CSF 6 hours after meningococcal challenge. The MMP inhibitor batimastat (BB-94) significantly reduced the BBB disruption and the increase in intracranial pressure irrespective of the time of batimastat administration (15 minutes before and 3 hours after meningococcal challenge) but failed to significantly reduce CSF white blood cell counts. In conclusion, our results suggest that MMPs are involved in the alterations of BBB permeability during experimental meningococcal meningitis.

Adult↗

Presence of matrix metalloproteinase-9 activity in the cerebrospinal fluid of human immunodeficiency virus-infected patients.

To determine whether matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-9 is a potential mediator involved in the frequently detected blood-brain barrier leakage in human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-infected patients, zymography was used to detect MMP-9 activity in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) samples of 80 HIV-infected patients and of 10 control patients. CSF MMP-9 activity was detected in 40% of HIV-infected patients (but not in controls) and was significantly more frequent in HIV-infected patients than in those without neurologic deficits (50% vs. 13.6%). The frequency of CSF MMP-9 activity did not significantly differ between neurologically symptomatic HIV-infected patients with or without opportunistic central nervous system disease (51.6% vs. 48.1%). Additionally, the presence of CSF MMP-9 activity in HIV-infected patients was associated with an increased CSF white blood cell count and an elevated CSF-to-serum albumin ratio, suggesting that it may play a role in blood-brain/CSF barrier leakage in HIV-infected patients.

CD4 Lymphocyte Count↗

Endothelin B receptor-mediated increase of cerebral blood flow in experimental pneumococcal meningitis.

Study investigates the role of endothelin (ET) receptors in mediating early changes in cerebral blood flow--as measured by laser Doppler flowmetry (CBFLDF)--during experimental pneumococcal meningitis. Meningitis was induced with heat-killed pneumococci and confirmed by a significant increase in CBFLDF (baseline 100%; 225.3 +/- 21.8% after 6 hours; mean +/- SD), intracranial pressure (ICP), brain water content, and white blood cell count in the CSF. Intravenous administration of the selective endothelin B (ETB) receptor antagonist BQ-788 immediately before pneumococcal challenge (but not 4 hours afterward) significantly attenuated these pathophysiologic alterations (e.g., CBFLDF 6 hours after pneumococcal challenge: 116.7 +/- 17.4%). Pretreatment with BQ-123, a selective endothelin A receptor antagonist, had no significant effect on ICP and brain water content, but augmented the increase in CBFLDF and CSF white blood cell count. Since ET is known to trigger the release of nitric oxide (NO) by ETB receptor activation, we examined specific ET-NO interactions in primary rat cerebromicrovascular endothelial cells after stimulation with heat-killed pneumococci. Pneumococci induced a significant increase in both ET and NO concentrations in endothelial cell culture medium. Treatment with phosphoramidon, an inhibitor of the endothelin-converting enzyme, prevented the production of endothelin and markedly reduced NO generation. Our data provide evidence that ET is involved as a mediator in early pneumococcal meningitis in the rat and contributes to the increase in CBFLDF, ICP, brain water content, and CSF pleocytosis, presumably through ETB receptor-mediated NO production.

Animals↗

Protective effect of the antioxidant N-acetyl-L-cysteine in pneumococcal meningitis in the rat.

We investigated whether the antioxidant N-acetyl-L-cysteine or S-methylisothiourea, an inhibitor of the inducible nitric oxide (NO) synthase, can modulate pathophysiological alterations in an advanced phase of experimental pneumococcal meningitis in the rat. N-acetyl-L-cysteine significantly attenuated the increase in brain water content, intracranial pressure and cerebrospinal fluid white blood cell count 24 h after infection as compared to untreated, infected rats. However, it had no effect on meningitis-associated disturbances in cerebrovascular autoregulation and CO2 reactivity of cerebral vessels. Treatment with S-methylisothiourea had no effect on the pathophysiological parameters measured in this model. These data suggest that reactive oxygen species, but not NO generated by the inducible NO synthase pathway, are key mediators of changes in brain water content, intracranial pressure and meningeal inflammation in an advanced stage of pneumococcal meningitis in the rat.

Acetylcysteine↗

7-Nitroindazole inhibits pial arteriolar vasodilation in a rat model of pneumococcal meningitis.

This study investigates how the neuronal and inducible nitric oxide synthase (NOS) pathways contribute to the cerebrovascular changes in the early phase of experimental pneumococcal meningitis in rats. Using a closed cranial window preparation, the diameters of pial arterioles were measured during 4 hours after intracisternal injection of heat-killed pneumococci and compared with controls (n = 6). Injection of pneumococci (n = 7) caused a significant increase in pial arteriolar diameter (157 +/- 22% after 4 hours; P < 0.05, compared with 104 +/- 11% in controls), intracranial pressure, CSF white blood cell counts, and brain water content. Treatment with the neuronal NOS inhibitor 7-nitroindazole (50 mg/kg given intraperitoneally, n = 5) prevented pneumococci-induced vasodilation (107 +/- 20% at 4 hours), whereas S-methylisothiourea (SMT; 0.1 mg/kg given intraperitoneally, n = 5), which predominantly inhibits the inducible NOS, did not influence pneumococci-induced vasodilation (154 +/- 38% at 4 hours). S-methylisothiourea at a dose of 1.0 mg/kg (n = 5), attenuated the vasodilation (124 +/- 18% at 4 hours). However, the increase in mean arterial blood pressure after SMT at 1.0 mg/kg, but not at 0.1 mg/kg, suggests that the higher dose of SMT influenced the constitutive NOS activity, causing inhibition of the pneumococci-induced vasodilation. Neither SMT (at both doses) nor 7-nitroindazole influenced the increase in brain water content, intracranial pressure, and CSF white blood cell counts in pneumococci-challenged rats. Our study suggests that pial arteriolar vasodilation in the early phase of experimental pneumococcal meningitis is mediated by the neuronal NOS pathway.

Animals↗

L-arginine-induced regional cerebral blood flow increase is abolished after transient focal cerebral ischemia in the rat.

We investigated the L-arginine-induced, regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) enhancement after different durations of transient focal cerebral ischemia in the rat to determine if L-arginine increases rCBF after transient focal cerebral ischemia. Focal ischemia (5 minutes and 20 minutes) followed by 90 minutes of reperfusion was induced in a normotensive rat suture-model. Regional cerebral blood flow in both hemispheres was measured by laser-Doppler-flowmetry. Reactivity of rCBF to L-arginine (300 mg/kg) was measured 45 minutes after reperfusion, and hypercapnia 90 minutes after reperfusion. The effect of D-arginine and pretreatment with the nitric oxide (NO) synthase inhibitor N(omega)-nitro-L-arginine (L-NA) (10 mg/kg) was examined in additional groups. Hypercapnia and L-arginine increased rCBF in sham operated controls and on the nonischemic hemispheres. D-arginine did not. Twenty-minute long ischemia significantly reduced the response to L-arginine (control side: 115 +/- 5.9%; ischemic side: 107 +/- 6.1%, n = 7) and hypercapnia, 5 minutes of ischemia did not. N(omega)-nitro-L-arginine pretreatment partly restored the L-arginine-induced rCBF increase. Thus, rCBF increase caused by L-arginine in the reperfusion period was unaffected by 5 minutes of ischemia, but reduced by 20 minutes of ischemia. The restoration after pretreatment with L-NA may be caused by attenuated production of cytotoxic substances, e.g., NO and related compounds.

Animals↗

Systemically (but not intrathecally) administered IL-10 attenuates pathophysiologic alterations in experimental pneumococcal meningitis.

IL-10, a potent immunosuppressive cytokine, leads to macrophage/monocyte deactivation, inhibiting the production of cytokines and the release of reactive oxygen species and reactive nitrogen intermediates, which are known to be involved in the pathophysiology of bacterial meningitis. We investigated the effect of IL-10 on regional cerebral blood flow, intracranial pressure, cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) white blood cell count, and brain water content within 6 h after intracisternal (i.c.) pneumococcal challenge in a rat model of meningitis. Compared with IL-10 vehicle-injected infected rats, i.p. administration of 5 microg of IL-10 significantly attenuated the increase in regional cerebral blood flow, brain water content, intracranial pressure, and CSF white blood cell count, whereas a lower dosage of IL-10 (0.5 microg) was ineffective. The inhibitory effect of IL-10 (5 microg) was observed irrespective of time of IL-10 administration: just before, 1 h after, or 4 h after pneumococcal challenge. In contrast, i.c. application of IL-10 (5 microg) did not modulate these pathophysiologic parameters, and even augmented CSF pleocytosis. Moreover, i.c. injection of IL-10 alone induced meningeal inflammation in uninfected rats. IL-10 injected i.p., but not i.c., markedly inhibited the increase in IL-6 levels, as determined in CSF of infected animals. IL-10 suppressed the increase of nitrite concentration in cell culture supernatant of primary rat cerebral endothelial cells when stimulated with heat-killed pneumococci. The possible modes of action of IL-10 in pneumococcal meningitis may involve its interference with the production of nitric oxide or IL-6.

Animals↗