Central nervous system damage due to acute paraquat poisoning: An experimental study with rat model

Paraquat (PQ) is a common herbicide and PQ poisoning is a major medical problem in Asia. However, few studies have focused on the acute neurotoxic changes caused by PQ. Here we report the acute neurotoxicological findings of rats treated with lethal dose of PQ. In substantia nigra (SN) and striatum we found obvious microglia (labeled by Iba-1) activation within one week. In SN and hippocampus, we detected increased oxidative stress in the neurons based on NeuN/8-OHdG immunofluorescence double labeling and laser cofocal microscopy. Moreover, we provided ultrastructural evidences of astrocyte edema and neurons apoptosis in rat brain by electron microscopy. Further studies will be needed with non-lethal dose of PQ to confirm these results and demonstrate the direct CNS toxicity of PQ.

► We established rat model of acute PQ poisoning.
► PQ led to increased oxidative stress in the neurons.
► PQ led to the activation of microglia in substantia nigra and striatum.
► PQ led to astrocyte edema and neuron apoptosis in the brain.