Viral infection of developing GABAergic neurons in a model... : NeuroReport (original) (raw)
CLINICAL NEUROSCIENCE
Viral infection of developing GABAergic neurons in a model of hippocampal disinhibition
Pearce, Bradley D.1,2; Valadi, Nojan M.1; Po, Cecilia L.1; Miller, Andrew H.1
1Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Emory University School of Medicine, 1639 Pierce Dr. WMB-4000, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA
2Corresponding Author: Bradley D. Pearce
Received 3 May 2000, accepted 18 May 2000
Abstract
Mechanisms by which perinatal viral infections can disrupt hippocampal development and cause selective neuronal death may have implications for temporal lobe epilepsy and schizophrenia. Despite abnormalities of inhibitory interneurons in these diseases, the causal relationships between such neurotransmitter changes and viral infections remain unclear. This relationship was examined in a model in which rats, infected with lymphocytic choriomeningitis virus (LCMV) as neonates, manifest a gradual loss of hippocampal dentate granule cells and neuronal hyperexcitability. The current data demonstrate that GABAergic interneurons are dual immunostained for LCMV antigens prior to the loss of dentate granule cells, supporting the hypothesis that LCMV may disrupt developing inhibitory circuits causing unbalanced excitatory neurotransmission and the eventual death of dentate granule cells due to excitotoxicity.
© 2000 Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, Inc.