Polychlorinated biphenyls impair blood–brain barrier integrity via disruption of tight junction proteins in cerebrum, cerebellum and hippocampus of female Wistar rats Neuropotential role of quercetin

• Published in: Human & experimental toxicology Vol. 32; no. 7; pp. 706 - 720
• Main Authors: Selvakumar, K., Prabha, R. Lakshmi, Saranya, K., Bavithra, S., Krishnamoorthy, G., Arunakaran, J.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: London, England SAGE Publications 01.07.2013; Sage Publications; Sage Publications Ltd
• Subjects: Allium cepa; Alzheimer's disease; Animals; Antioxidants; Biological and medical sciences; Blood-brain barrier; Brain - drug effects; Brain - metabolism; Environmental Pollutants - toxicity; Female; Hydrogen Peroxide - metabolism; Lipid Peroxidation; Medical sciences; Neuroprotective Agents - pharmacology; PCB; Polychlorinated biphenyls; Polychlorinated Biphenyls - toxicity; Quercetin - pharmacology; Rats; Rats, Wistar; RNA, Messenger - metabolism; Rodents; Thiobarbituric Acid Reactive Substances - metabolism; Tight Junction Proteins - genetics; Toxicology; tight junction proteins; quercetin; polychlorinated biphenyls; Blood–brain barrier; Cerebellum; Human; Rat; Blood―brain barrier; Rodentia; Central nervous system; Cell junction; Polychlorobiphenyls; Flavonoid; Blood brain barrier; Gap junction; Protein; Encephalon; Polyphenol; Vertebrata; Mammalia; Animal; Quercetin; Phenols; Female; Tight junction; Hippocampus
• ISSN: 0960-3271; 1477-0903
• DOI: 10.1177/0960327112464798

Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) comprise a ubiquitous class of toxic substances associated with carcinogenic and tumor-promoting effects as well as neurotoxic properties. Reactive oxygen species, which is produced from PCBs, alters blood–brain barrier (BBB) integrity, which is paralleled by cytoskeletal rearrangements and redistribution and disappearance of tight junction proteins (TJPs) like claudin-5 and occludin. Quercetin, a potent antioxidant present in onion and other vegetables, appears to protect brain cells against oxidative stress, a tissue-damaging process associated with Alzheimer’s and other neurodegenerative disorders. The aim of this study is to analyze the role of quercetin on oxidative stress markers and transcription of transmembrane and cytoplasmic accessory TJPs on cerebrum, cerebellum and hippocampus of female rats exposed to PCBs. Rats were divided into the following four groups. Group I: received only vehicle (corn oil) intraperitoneally (i.p.); group II: received Aroclor 1254 at a dose of 2 mg/kg body weight (bwt)/day (i.p); group III: received Aroclor 1254 (i.p.) and simultaneously quercetin 50 mg/kg bwt/day through gavage and group IV: received quercetin alone gavage. From the experiment, the levels of hydrogen peroxide, lipid peroxidation and thiobarbituric acid reactive substances were observed to increase significantly in cerebrum, cerebellum and hippocampus as 50%, 25% and 20%, respectively, after exposure to PCB, and the messenger RNA expression of TJP in rats exposed to PCBs is decreased and is retrieved to the normal level simultaneously in quercetin-treated rats. Hence, quercetin can be used as a preventive medicine to PCBs exposure and prevents neurodegenerative disorders.