Hypothermia-induced increase in galanin concentrations and ischemic neuroprotection in the rat brain

The effects of hypothermia on galanin concentrations and the relation between ischemic brain lesions, hypothermia and galanin concentrations in a transient and focal rat stroke model were investigated in order to elucidate whether hypothermia-induced alterations in galanin concentrations could constitute a part of the established neuroprotective effect of hypothermia.Female rats were allocated to normothermia (37 °C) or hypothermia (33 °C) treatments during a 60 min microclip middle cerebral artery occlusion. The ischemic lesions were visualized after observation periods of 2 or 7 days and the concentration of galanin measured by radioimmunoassay in extracts of punch biopsies from both the lesioned and the contralateral control hemisphere.Hypothermia-induced an overall increase in the concentrations of immunoreactive galanin (p < 0.001). The elevated galanin levels were predominantly found in the non-ischemic control hemisphere, in the hippocampus, thalamus and the posterior part of parietal cortex. The galanin concentrations were lower in the ischemic hemisphere in both the normo- and hypothermic animals compared to the corresponding contra lateral intact hemisphere (p = 0.049). The factor of time, 2 respectively 7 days, did not show any significant difference regarding the galanin concentrations (p = 0.844). Multivariate analyses of variance revealed significant effect of ischemia on the size of the ischemic brain lesions (p = 0.001) but no overall effect of temperature when data from both 2 and 7 days observation periods were analyzed together. The ischemic lesions were generally larger at 33 degrees after 2 days (p = 0.230). Prolonged observation time of 7 days resulted in a significant reduction of the ischemic brain lesion (p = 0.011) with smaller ischemic lesions in the hypothermic group. Our data support the notion that hypothermia-induced increase in the tissue concentrations of galanin in the brain are the result of changes from optimal homeostatic conditions – the hypothermia-induced stress – rather than the ischemia/re-perfusion lesion induced changes in galanin concentrations. Hypothermia-induced elevation in galanin concentration is therefore not likely to be amongst the major protective mechanisms of hypothermia.