Affiliations: Department of Cellular Biology and Genetics, University of
Alcala, 28871, Madrid, Spain | Department of Cellular Biology, University Complutense,
28040, Madrid, Spain
Abstract: The response of astroglial cells in the hippocampus to long-term
portacaval anastomosis (PCA), an experimental model of hepatic encephalopathy,
was studied in adult male rats and compared with controls. Six months after
PCA, the rat hippocampi were processed for glial fibrillary acidic protein
(GFAP). GFAP-immunopositive astroglial profiles were observed in all
hippocampal layers in PCA rats, but GFAP distribution differed in PCA rats and
controls. In PCA rats, cell bodies and cell processes immunostained with GFAP
were observed mainly in the CA1-CA3 layers in relation to pyramidal neurons,
whereas the number and length of the astroglial processes decreased in the rest
of the hippocampal regions. In addition, decreased GFAP immunoreactivity in the
perivascular processes was observed in PCA rats compared with controls. These
results show that long-term PCA elicited different responses in GFAP expression
in different hippocampal regions, which might suggest a regional variation in
glial sensitivity.
