Cytokines and Adhesion Molecules Expression in the Brain in Human Cerebral Malaria

Henry Armah, Edwin Kwame Wiredu, Alfred Kofi Dodoo, Andrew Anthony Adjei, Yao Tettey and Richard Gyasi
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Henry Armah: Department of Pathology, University of Ghana Medical School
Edwin Kwame Wiredu: Department of Pathology, University of Ghana Medical School
Alfred Kofi Dodoo: Histology & Electron Microscopy Unit, Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research, University of Ghana College of Health Sciences, Accra, Ghana
Andrew Anthony Adjei: Department of Pathology, University of Ghana Medical School
Yao Tettey: Department of Pathology, University of Ghana Medical School
Richard Gyasi: Department of Pathology, University of Ghana Medical School

IJERPH, 2005, vol. 2, issue 1, 1-9

Abstract: Although the role of systemic proinflammatory cytokines, IL-1? and TNF-?, and their up-regulation of adhesion molecules, ICAM-1, VCAM-1 and E-Selectin, in the pathogenesis of cerebral malaria (CM) is well established, the role of local cytokine release remain unclear. Immunohistochemistry (IHC) was used to compare the expression of ICAM-1, VCAM-1, E-Selectin, IL-1?, TNF-? and TGF- ? at light microscopic level in cerebral, cerebellar and brainstem postmortem cryostat sections from 10 CM, 5 severe malarial anemia (SMA), 1 purulent bacterial meningitis (PBM), 2 non-central nervous system infections (NCNSI) and 3 non-infections (NI) deaths in Ghanaian children. Fatal malaria and Salmonella sepsis showed significantly higher vascular expression of all 3 adhesion molecules, with highly significant co-localization with sequestration in the malaria cases. However, there was negligible difference between CM and SMA. TGF-? showed intravascular and perivascular distribution in all cases, but expression was most intense in the PBM case and CM group. TNF-? and IL-1? showed prominent brain parenchymal staining, in addition to intravascular and perivascular staining, in only the PBM case and CM group. The maximal expression of all 6 antigens studied was in the cerebellar sections of the malaria cases. Endothelial activation is a feature of fatal malaria and Salmonella sepsis, with adhesion molecule expression being highly correlated with sequestration. IL-1? and TNF-? are upregulated in only cases with neurodegenerative lesions, whilst TGF-? is present in all cases. Both cytokines and adhesion molecules were maximally upregulated in the cerebellar sections of the malaria cases.

Keywords: Cytokines; Adhesion Molecules; Human Brain; Postmortem; Cerebral Malaria (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2005
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