Neurohypophyseal hormones in the integration of physiological responses to immune challenges

Interleukin-1 receptor antagonist decreases cerebrospinal fluid nitric oxide levels and increases vasopressin secretion in the late phase of sepsis in rats

The aim of this study was to analyze the effect of IL-1ra (an Interleukin-1 receptor antagonist) on sepsis-induced alterations in vasopressin (AVP) and nitric oxide (NO) levels. In addition, IL-1ra effect on the hypothalamic nitric oxide synthase (NOS) activities and survival rate was also analyzed. After Wistar rats were intracerebroventricular injected with IL-1ra (9 pmol) or vehicle (PBS 0.01 M), sepsis was induced by cecal-ligation and puncture (CLP). Blood, CSF, and hypothalamic samples were collected from different groups of rats (n = 8/group) after 4, 6, and 24 h. AVP and NO levels were greatly increased in CLP. Both total NOS and inducible NOS (iNOS) activities were also greatly increased in CLP rats. These changes in AVP, NO, and NOS were not observed in sham-operated control rats. IL-1ra administration did not alter plasma AVP levels after 4 and 6 h as compared to vehicle in CLP animals but after 24 h were significantly (P < 0.01) higher in IL-1ra-treated animals. IL-1ra administration significantly (P < 0.01) decreased NO concentration in CSF but not in plasma. Both total NOS and iNOS activities were also significantly decreased by IL-1ra at 24 h in CLP animals. Moreover, the 24 h survival rate of IL-1ra-treated rats increased by 38 % in comparison to vehicle administered animals. The central administration of IL-1ra increased AVP secretion in the late phase of sepsis which was beneficial for survival. We believe that one of the mechanisms for this effect of IL-1ra is through reduction of NO concentration in CSF and hence lower hypothalamic iNOS activities in the septic rats.

Nitric oxide has a role in attenuating the neuroendocrine response to anaphylactoid stress during lactation

Stress increases nitric oxide (NO) production in the paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus (PVH). Lactation diminishes the response to stress and increases basal NO production markers in the PVH of the dam. This study investigated whether lactation modified the anaphylactic reaction to egg white (EW) injection, and if nitric oxide regulates the neuroendocrine response to this stressor. The activational response of PVH to EW was assessed by c-Fos immunohistochemistry, and NO production was determined by histological staining of NADPH-diaphorase and neuronal nitric oxide synthase (nNOS) and by measuring the concentration of total nitrates and nitrites (NOx) in the hypothalamus of lactating and diestrus rats. EW injection significantly increased the number of Fos-positive neurons in the parvocellular subdivision of the PVH in diestrus, but not in lactating rats. Similarly, EW injection increased the number of NADPH-diaphorase- and nNOS-positive cells in the PVH of diestrus rats, but it did not alter the already increased basal number of NO-positive cells in lactating rats. Furthermore, the total concentration of NOx in the hypothalamus, the circulating level of corticosterone and interleukin-6 increased significantly after EW in diestrus, but not in lactating rats, compared to their corresponding controls. Intracerebral administration of L-NAME, a general NOS inhibitor, reversed the attenuation of the activational response to EW in the PVH of lactating rats. The present results show that lactation diminishes the anaphylactoid reaction to EW compared to that in diestrus rats. This attenuation was absent after L-NAME treatment, suggesting that sustained NO production in the PVH during lactation may limit the neuroendocrine response to stress.

Role of central NO-cGMP pathway in vasopressin and oxytocin gene expression during sepsis

Sepsis induces massive production of inflammatory mediators, such as nitric oxide (NO), and causes neuroendocrine and cardiovascular alterations. This study investigates the involvement of the central NO-cGMP pathway in arginine vasopressin (AVP) and oxytocin (OXY) gene expression during sepsis induced by cecal ligation and puncture (CLP). Male Wistar rats received an i.c.v. injection of ODQ (0.25 μg/μL), a selective inhibitor of the heme site of soluble guanylate cyclase, or of 1% dymethilsulfoxide (DMSO), as vehicle. Thirty minutes after the injections, sepsis was induced by cecal ligation and puncture or the animals were sham operated. The ODQ pre-treatment did not alter the progressive NO increase observed after CLP. In the supraoptic nucleus (SON), this pretreatment increased the relative gene expression ratio of AVP and OXY in the initial phase of sepsis, but in the late phase, the gene expression of both hormones was reduced. In the paraventricular nucleus (PVN), soluble guanylate cyclase inhibition caused an even larger decrease in the relative gene expression ratio of AVP and OXY during sepsis. These results are indicative of a role of the NO-cGMP pathway in hormonal synthesis in the SON and PVN of the hypothalamus during polymicrobial sepsis.

Stress activation of IL-6 neurons in the hypothalamus

An emerging literature attests to the ability of psychological stress to alter the inflammatory cytokine environment of the body. While the ability of stress to cause cytokine release is well established, the neural pathways involved in this control have yet to be identified. This study tests the hypothesis that IL-6 neurons of the hypothalamo-neurohypophyseal system (HNS), a neural pathway proposed to secrete IL-6 into the circulation, are activated in response to psychological stress. Colocalization studies confirm robust expression of IL-6 in cell bodies and fibers of vasopressin (but not oxytocin) neurons of the paraventricular (PVN) and supraoptic nucleus (SON) of the rat hypothalamus. In response to restraint, there was a greater increase in c-Fos expression in SON IL-6-positive (IL-6+) neurons. In addition, both psychogenic (restraint) or systemic stress (hypoxia) lead to phosphorylated ERK induction only in IL-6+ magnocellular neurons, indicating selective activation of the MAPK signaling pathway in the IL-6 subset of magnocellular neurons. Finally, restraint upregulated IL-6 mRNA expression in both the PVN and SON, which was accompanied by a four-fold increase in circulating IL-6. The data indicate that noninflammatory stressors selectively activate IL-6 magnocellular neurons, upregulate IL-6 gene expression in the PVN and SON, and increase plasma IL-6. In summary, results show that IL-6 neurons of the HNS are a recruited component of the response to psychological stress.

Chronic stress plasticity in the hypothalamic paraventricular nucleus

Proper integration and execution of the physiological stress response is essential for maintaining homoeostasis. Stress responses are controlled in large part by the paraventricular nucleus (PVN) of the hypothalamus, which contains three functionally distinct neural populations that modulate multiple stress effectors: (1) hypophysiotrophic PVN neurons that directly control the activity of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenocortical (HPA) axis; (2) magnocellular neurons and their secreted neurohypophysial peptides; and (3) brainstem and spinal cord projecting neurons that regulate autonomic function. Evidence for activation of PVN neurons during acute stress exposure demonstrates extensive involvement of all three effector systems. In addition, all PVN regions appear to participate in chronic stress responses. Within the hypophysiotrophic neurons, chronic stress leads to enhanced expression of secreted products, reduced expression of glucocorticoid receptor and GABA receptor subunits and enhanced glutamate receptor expression. In addition, there is evidence for chronic stress-induced morphological plasticity in these neurons, with chronic drive causing changes in cell size and altered GABAergic and glutamatergic innervation. The response of the magnocellular system varies with different chronic exposure paradigms, with changes in neurohypophysial peptide gene expression, peptide secretion and morphology seen primarily after intense stress exposure. The preautonomic cell groups are less well studied, but are likely to be associated with chronic stress-induced changes in cardiovascular function. Overall, the PVN is uniquely situated to coordinate responses of multiple stress effector systems in the face of prolonged stimulation, and likely plays a role in both adaptation and pathology associated with chronic stress.

Response of interleukin-1beta in the magnocellular system to salt-loading

Drinking 2% NaCl decreases interleukin (IL)-1beta in the neural lobe and enhances IL-1 Type 1 receptor expression in magnocellular neurones and pituicytes. To quantify cytokine depletion from the neural lobe during progressive salt loading and determine whether the changes are reversible and correspond with stores of vasopressin (VP) or oxytocin (OT), rats were given water on day 0 and then 2% NaCl to drink for 2, 5, 8 or 5 days followed by 5 days of water (rehydration). Control rats drinking only water were pair-fed amounts eaten by 5-day salt-loaded animals. Animals were decapitated on day 8, the neural lobe frozen and plasma hormones analysed by radioimmunoassay (OT, VP) or enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (IL-1beta). IL-1beta, VP and OT in homogenates of the neural lobe were quantified by immunocapillary electrophoresis with laser-induced fluorescence detection. Differences were determined by ANOVA, Tukey's t-test, Dunnett's procedure, Fisher's least significant difference and linear regression analysis. In response to salt-loading, rats lost body weight similar to pair-fed controls, drank progressively more 2% NaCl and excreted greater urine volumes. Plasma VP increased at days 2 and 8 of salt-loading, whereas osmolality, OT and cytokine were enhanced after 8 days with IL-1beta remaining elevated after rehydration. In the neural lobe, all three peptides decreased progressively with increasing duration of salt-loading (IL-1beta, r2 = 0.98; OT, r2 = 0.94; VP, r2 = 0.93), beginning on day 2 (IL-1beta; VP) or 5 (OT), with only VP replenished by rehydration. IL-1beta declined more closely (P < 0.0001; ANOVA interaction analysis) with OT (r2 = 0.96) than VP (r2 = 0.86), indicative of corelease from the neural lobe during chronic dehydration. Local effects of IL-1beta on magnocellular terminals, pituicytes and microglia in the neural lobe with activation of forebrain osmoregulatory structures by circulating cytokine may sustain neurosecretion of OT and VP during prolonged salt-loading.