Differential presynaptic actions of pyrethroid insecticides on glutamatergic and GABAergic neurons in the hippocampus

This study was designed to investigate the effects of several pyrethroids on the extracellular level of glutamate and γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA) in the hippocampus of rats measured using microdialysis following systemic (i.p.) administration. Pyrethroids, allethrin (type I), cyhalothrin (type II) and deltamethrin (type II), were found to have differential effects on glutamatergic and GABAergic neurons in the hippocampus. Allethrin had an interesting dual effect, increasing glutamate release with low doses (10 and 20 mg/kg) to about 175–150% and decreasing glutamate release with high dose (60 mg/kg) to about 50% of baseline. Cyhalothrin (10, 20 and 60 mg/kg) inhibited the release of glutamate dose-dependently to about 60–30% of baseline. The extracellular level of GABA was decreased to about 50% of baseline by 10 and 20 mg/kg allethrin. The high dose of allethrin (60 mg/kg) and all doses of cyhalothrin (10, 20 and 60 mg/kg) increased the extracellular level of GABA while decreasing the level of glutamate. Deltamethrin dose-dependently increased extracellular glutamate levels to about 190–275% of baseline while decreasing the level of GABA. Local infusion of TTX (1 μM), a Na+ channel blocker, completely prevented the effect of allethrin (10, 20 and 60 mg/kg), cyhalothrin (20 and 60 mg/kg) and deltamethrin (20 mg/kg) on glutamate and GABA release, but only partially blocked the effects of 60 mg/kg deltamethrin. The effect of deltamethrin (60 mg/kg) on glutamate release was completely prevented by local infusion of nimodipine (10 μM), an L-type Ca2+ channel blocker. Collectively, results from this study suggest that the excitatory glutamatergic neurons in the hippocampus are modulated by inhibitory GABA-releasing interneurons and that other mechanisms, beside sodium channels, may be involved with the neurotoxic action of pyrethroids.