Effect of 2,5-hexanedione on the content of neurofilament in rat nervous system

Objective To investigate the alterations of neurofilament (NF) in cerebrum, spinal cord and sciatic nerve of rats intoxicated with 2,5-hexanedione(HD).Method HD was administered by intraperitoneal injection to Wistar rats with daily dosing of 200 and 400 mg/kg for continuous 8w (five times per week). Cerebrum, spinal cord and sciatic nerve were excised and homogenized,then centrifuged at (28 000)g for 30 min to prepare the supernatant and pellet sample.The relative levels of low molecular weight NF(NF-L), medium molecular weight NF(NF-M), and high molecular weight NF (NF-H) were determined by SDS-PAGE and Western Blotting.Results Except for supernatant NF-L in the cerebrum and sciatic nerve, and supernatant NF-M in the cerebrum were not detected, HD-intoxication was associated with dose-dependent reductions in NF subunit contents of the supernatant and pellet fractions, with the relative content 5% to 77% of the control proximately. Among the nervous tissues and three NF subunits, the decreases in the sciatic nerve and NF-M tended to be greater than the others.Conclusion HD-intoxication results in alterations in NF content, and the alterations are related to its peripheral neurotoxicity.