Parkinson's disease: studies with an animal model

Parkinson' disease has been associated with degeneration of dopamine-containing neurons of the nigrostriatal bundle. Many neurological features of Parkinsonism can be produced in rats by selective destruction of central dopaminergic neurons using the neurotoxin 6-hydroxydopamine. In this review we discuss two aspects of Parkinson's disease that have been investigated in these animals. First, we consider why near-total degeneration of nigrostriatal bundle neurons is required before neurological symptoms emerge. It appears that the loss of dopaminergic neurons is accompanied by an exponential increase in the ratio of tyrosine hydroxylase activity to dopamine content. Thus, after the brain lesions there may be a compensatory increase in the capacity of residual dopaminergic neurons to synthesize and release transmitter. Second, we consider why stress produces severe neurological deficits in patients who are only mildly impaired otherwise. It appears that a variety of stressors produce an abrupt but transient increase in dopaminergic activity in the striatum of intact animals and that this increase is markedly attenuated by 6-hydroxydopamine treatment. Thus, stress-induced akinesia in animals with dopamine-depleting brain lesions and in Parkinsonian patients may result from the impaired ability of residual neurons to respond approximately to such stimuli.     

Neuropathy in experimental diabetes: an animal model.

A morphometric study of the common peroneal nerve in early experimental diabetes in rats showed that fibre size was diminished. The reduction in the size of the axon was twice that of the myelin sheath. This may contribute to the understanding of the impaired motor conduction velocity found in diabetics shortly after the onset of their disease.     

The guinea pig as an animal model for developmental and reproductive toxicology studies

BACKGROUND : Regulatory guidelines for developmental and reproductive toxicology (DART) studies require selection of “relevant” animal models as determined by kinetic, pharmacological, and toxicological data. Traditionally, rats, mice, and rabbits are the preferred animal models for these studies. However, for test articles that are pharmacologically inactive in the traditional animal models, the guinea pig may be a viable option. This choice should not be made lightly, as guinea pigs have many disadvantages compared to the traditional species, including limited historical control data, variability in pregnancy rates, small and variable litter size, long gestation, relative maturity at birth, and difficulty in dosing and breeding. METHODS : This report describes methods for using guinea pigs in DART studies and provides results of positive and negative controls. Standard study designs and animal husbandry methods were modified to allow mating on the postpartum estrus in fertility studies and were used for producing cohorts of pregnant females for developmental studies. RESULTS : A positive control study with the pregnancy-disrupting agent mifepristone resulted in the anticipated failure of embryo implantation and supported the use of the guinea pig model. Control data for reproductive endpoints collected from 5 studies are presented. CONCLUSION : In cases where the traditional animal models are not relevant, the guinea pig can be used successfully for DART studies. Birth Defects Res (Part B)86: 92-97, 2009. © 2009 Wiley-Liss, Inc.     

Immunohistochemistry of enkephalins: model studies on hapten-carrier conjugates and fixation methods.

For immunohistochemical demonstration of the enkephalin octapeptide Met5-enkephalin-Arg6-Gly7-Leu8, the peptide was conjugated with a carrier protein using either glutaraldehyde or 1-ethyl-3 (3-dimethylaminopropyl)-carbodiimide as coupling agent. Antisera were raised in rabbits and their specificity was studied using the immunoblotting technique. The results suggest that glutaraldehyde selectively couples the amino terminus of the peptide to the carrier protein, while carbodiimide coupling produces a mixture of specificities. Accordingly, antiserum raised against the glutaraldehyde-induced conjugate specifically recognized the peptide carboxyl terminus and allowed immunohistochemical distinction of the octapeptide from other closely related opioid peptides, such as Leu5- and Met5-enkephalin, Met5-enkephalin-Arg6-Phe7, and Phe1-Met2-Arg3-Phe4-NH2. In contrast, antiserum raised against the carbodiimide-induced octapeptide conjugate showed a mixture of specificities. Addition of glutaraldehyde to the fixative enhanced octapeptide immunoreactivity in several tissues and revealed a previously unknown nerve system in the pituitary gland. These results support the idea that optimal immunohistochemical demonstration of small molecules, which requires conjugation to a carrier protein, is obtained when the coupling agent is included in the fixative so as to induce the actual coupling reaction during fixation.     

The dystrophic hamster: an animal model of alveolar hypoventilation.

The BIO 14.6 dystrophic hamster (DH) is a genetically determined animal model of alveolar hypoventilation (AH) that exhibits a ventilatory control pattern of compensation and then decompensation similar to that in progressive forms of muscular dystrophy and nonprogressive congenital myopathies in humans. Possible causes of AH in the DH include respiratory muscle weakness, ventilation-to-perfusion inequalities, and an inadequate drive to breathe. Histochemical and contractile abnormalities of the diaphragm, reduced lung surface area available for gas exchange, abnormal pulmonary microvascular reactivity to hypoxia, altered levels of neurochemicals, and abnormal cellular regulation of calcium are among the specific factors that may contribute to the development of AH. The potential role of hypothyroidism in the development of AH is reviewed because many hypothyroid patients exhibit AH and other ventilatory dysfunctions, hypothyroidism is present in human patients and animals with muscular dystrophy, and thyroid status is known to influence lung architecture, myocyte function, and neural activity. Additional studies linking neurohormonal signals, transcellular signal processing, and control of ventilation in the DH may help us understand the etiology of AH in human disease.     

Cyclosporine A-induced autoimmunity: an animal model for human scleroderma

Animal models have been shown to be very valuable in the elucidation of pathologic mechanisms in complex human diseases. However, conscientious comparison with the human disease is required to define to what extend the respective model is relevant for the human situation. In this study we have compared Cyclosporine A-induced autoimmunity in the rat with human scleroderma and hereby we have taken into account the histo- and immunopathology, the presence of vascular abnormalities, and the occurrence of circulating autoantibodies. Altogether, the macroscopical and histopathological similarities are the most important characteristics for considering Cyclosporine A-induced autoimmunity as an experimental model for human scleroderma. Furthermore, the presence of T cells and macrophages in the lesions, as well as the peripheral immune deviation within the CD4 T cell compartment are two other common factors and they justify the use of the animal model Cyclosporine A-induced autoimmunity in further studies on the role of T cells in the pathogenesis of scleroderma.     

Chylomicron metabolism in an animal model for hyperlipoproteinemia type I.

Mink homozygous for the mutation Pro214Leu in lipoprotein lipase (LPL) had only traces of LPL activity but amounts of LPL protein in their tissues similar to those of normal mink. In normal mink, lymph chylomicrons from rats given [3H]retinol (incorporated into retinyl esters, providing a core label) and [14C]oleic acid (incorporated mainly in triglycerides (TG)) were rapidly cleared from the circulation. In the homozygous mink, clearance was much retarded. The ratio of TG to core label in plasma did not decrease and much less [14C]oleic acid appeared in plasma. Still, half of the labeled material disappeared from the circulating blood within 30;-40 min and the calculated total turnover of TG in the hypertriglyceridemic mink was almost as large as in normal mink. The core label was distributed to the same tissues in hypertriglyceridemic mink as in normal mink. Half to two-thirds of the cleared core label was in the liver. The large difference was that in the hypertriglyceridemic mink, TG label (about 40% of the total amount removed) followed the core label to the liver and there was no preferential uptake of TG over core label in adipose or muscle tissue. In normal mink, only small amounts of TG label (<10%) appeared in the liver, while most was in adipose and muscle tissues. Apolipoprotein B-48 dominated in the accumulated TG-rich lipoproteins in blood of hypertriglyceridemic mink, even in fasted animals.     

Minimal residual disease in leukemia: studies in an animal model for acute myelocytic leukemia (BNML)

The possibilities for studying minimal residual disease (MRD) in human acute myelocytic leukemia (AML) are limited. Animal models are, therefore, indispensable for gaining insight into the characteristics of leukemia growth during the MRD phase. Studies were done to compare AML to acute myelocytic leukemia in the Brown Norway rat (BNML). The BNML model exhibited a high degree of similarity to human AML with regard to its general growth characteristics, its cell kinetic parameters, its biophysical parameters and its response to chemotherapy. This implied that studies of the BNML model have predictive value for clinical application. In the BNML model a number of independent methods are available to quantify the number of leukemic cells, i.e., indirectly by means of various bioassays or directly by using monoclonal antibody labeling and flow cytometry. Studies of the BNML model in relation to the understanding of various aspects of MRD in leukemia are discussed in this concise review. Insight has been obtained with regard to the kinetics of MRD; the efficacy of certain treatment modalities, e.g., cytostatic drug treatment with or without total body irradiation to eradicate MRD; the efficacy of various methods for eliminating residual leukemic cells from autologous marrow grafts; the emergence of drug resistance during MRD; and the progression of residual disease during the remission phase ultimately leading to a relapse and the implications of these observations for staging leukemia patients during the phase of MRD.     

Characterization of bone-implant fixation using modal analysis: Application to a press-fit implant model

Orthopaedic implant fixation is strongly dependant upon the effective mechanical properties of newly formed tissue. In this study, we evaluated the potential of modal analysis to derive viscoelastic properties of periprosthetic tissue. We hypothesized that Young's modulus and loss factor could be obtained by a combined theoretical, computational and experimental modal analysis approach. This procedure was applied to ex vivo specimens from a cylindrical experimental implant placed in cancellous bone in an unloaded press-fit configuration, obtained after a four week observation period. Four sections each from seven textured titanium implants were investigated. The first resonant frequency and loss factor were measured. Average experimentally determined loss factor was 2% (SD 0.4%) and average first resonant frequency was 2.1 KHz (SD: 50). A 2D axisymmetric finite element (FE) model identified effective Young's modulus of tissue using experimental resonant frequencies as input. Average value was 42 MPa (SD: 2.4) and no significant difference between specimens was observed.In this pilot study, the non-destructive method allowed accurate measure of dynamic loss factor and resonant frequency and derivation of effective Young's modulus. Prior to implementing this dynamic protocol for broader mechanical evaluation of experimental implant fixation, further work is needed to determine if this affects results from subsequent destructive shear push-out tests.     

Biomaterials aspects of porous microcarriers for animal cell culture.

Porous microcarriers are new support materials with important advantages in both industrial cell-culture processes and the culture of cells of medical importance. Porous microcarriers are now commercially available with internal architecture and surface chemistry suitable for culture of both anchorage-dependent and anchorage-independent animal cells.     

Further studies on the month-of-birth effect on body size: Rural schoolchildren and an animal model

A previous study (Henneberg and Louw: Am. J. Hum. Biol. 2:227–233, 1990) showed that urban schoolchildren born between August and January were taller and heavier by 13 to 17% of the standard deviation (S) than those born in February to July. The study is now extended to 1,522 impoverished rural schoolchildren from the Little Karoo district of S. Africa and to 804 German Shepherd dogs kennelled at a breeding station in the Transvaal. The dogs provided a quasi-experimental model because for all of them nutrition and living conditions were practically identical throughout the year. The month-of-birth effect in the body weight of dogs was found to be stronger than that in urban children: dogs born between August and January were heavier by 22% of S than those born in February through July. In rural children the effect is present, but its magnitude is somewhat less and the peak is shifted by 2–3 months. Children born in May through October are 11% of S lighter than those born in November through April. It seems that living conditions characteristic of extreme poverty tend to diminish the effect. In both the animal model and rural children the month-of-birth effect decreases with advancing age and is more pronounced in males than in females. These findings are in agreement with previous observations in urban children from Cape Town. Since the living conditions of dogs and humans differ, as do the climatic conditions of Cape Town, Little Karoo and the Transvaal, it is surmised that the similarity of the effect may result from factors influencing the entire planet in a uniform way. © 1993 Wiley-Liss, Inc.     

Effects of methylphenidate on whirler mice: an animal model for hyperkinesis

The neurological mutant whirler mouse, one of several strains of waltzing mice, may be suitable as an animal model for testing studies relative to hyperkinesis. As in hyperkinetic children, behaviorally the mice are extremely restless, nervous, excitable, irritable and aggressive but also show symptoms of rotation behavior, head-shaking and deafness. This study demonstrated that paradoxically oral intubation of daily doses of 5.0 mg/kg of methylphenidate during a 23 week period significantly decreased circling activity in test mice. The effects on circling behavior were reversible following cessation of methylphenidate administration. After 18 weeks of cessation of the CNS stimulant, oral administration of a single dose of 2.5 mg/kg of methylphenidate caused a 37.8% increase in circling activity but the increase compared to control whirler mice was not significant. Use of this strain as an animal model may be especially beneficial in the screening of new drugs for the treatment of hyperkinesis.     

Combining bisphosphonates with allograft bone for implant fixation

The aim of this review was to discuss the current state of research of combining bisphosphonates with allograft bone for implant fixation. The allograft bone can only be reached by the bisphosphonate once it has been revascularized. However, this can be circumvented by local administration of bisphosphonates. Several animal studies showed that local application of bisphosphonates might protect the graft from resorption. There seems to be an optimum concentration for local application, however, this optimum varies for all different bisphosphonates. It can be concluded that local administration of bisphosphonates might play an important role in improving stability after surgery in which a prosthesis is combined with allograft bone to restore bony defects, however caution should be taken when extrapolating results of animal research to the human clinical situation. More research is needed to study the effect of local bisphophonate use in humans and to study possible side effects.