Diurnal Variations of Tumor Necrosis Factor Alpha mRNA and Alpha-Tubulin mRNA in Rat Brain

The experiments described herein were designed to determine whether tumor necrosis factor α (TNF-α) displays a diurnal variation in various areas of the normal rat brain. TNF-α mRNA transcripts were detected by reverse-transcriptase polymerase chain reaction. To monitor diurnal changes in TNF-α and...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Neuroimmunomodulation 1997-03, Vol.4 (2), p.84-90
Main Authors: Bredow, Sebastian, Guha-Thakurta, Nandita, Taishi, Ping, Obál Jr, Ferenc, Krueger, James M.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Animals
Brain Chemistry - physiology
Circadian Rhythm - physiology
Male
Original Paper
Rats
Rats, Sprague-Dawley
RNA, Messenger - analysis
RNA, Messenger - biosynthesis
Sleep - physiology
Tubulin - genetics
Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha - genetics
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Summary:The experiments described herein were designed to determine whether tumor necrosis factor α (TNF-α) displays a diurnal variation in various areas of the normal rat brain. TNF-α mRNA transcripts were detected by reverse-transcriptase polymerase chain reaction. To monitor diurnal changes in TNF-α and α-tubulin expression, rats were sacrificed every 4 h for 24 h starting 1 h after light onset; relative mRNA levels were determined for the cerebellum, cortex, hippocampus, hypothalamus and brainstem. TNF-α mRNA was higher during the light than in the dark phase in the hypothalamus and hippocampus. α-Tubulin mRNA exhibited a similar diurnal variation in the hypothalamus, hippocampus and cortex. In contrast, (β-actin mRNA was lower during the light phase than the dark phase in the hippocampus and cortex. The observed diurnal variations in TNF-α mRNA are consistent with the hypothesis that TNF has a physiological role in the brain.
ISSN:1021-7401
1423-0216
DOI:10.1159/000097325