J Vet Sci.  2000 Dec;1(2):77-80.

Immunohistochemical study of constitutive neuronal and inducible nitric oxide synthase in the central nervous system of goat with natural listeriosis

• Shin T
• Weinstock
• Castro MD
• Acland H
• Walter M
• Kim HY
• Purchase H

Abstract

The expression of both constitutive and inducible forms of nitric oxide synthase (NOS) was investigated by immunohistochemical staining of formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded sections in normal and Listeria monocytogenes-infected brains of goats. In normal control goats, a small number of neurons showed immunoreactivity of both iNOS and nNOS, and the number of iNOS-positive neurons was higher than the number of nNOS-positive neurons. In natural listeriosis, listeria antigens were easily immunostained in the inflammatory cells of microabscesses. In this lesion, the immunoreactivity of iNOS in neurons was more intense than the control, but nNOS was not. In microabscesses, nNOS was weakly visualized in macrophages and neutrophils, while iNOS was expressed in macrophages, but not in neutrophils. These findings suggest that normal caprine brain cells, including neurons, constitutively express iNOS and nNOS, and the expressions of these molecules is increased in Listeria monocytogenes infections. Furthermore, inflammatory cells, including macrophages, expressing both nNOS and iNOS may play important roles in the pathogenesis of bacterial meningoencephalitis in goat.

Keyword

nitric oxide synthase; goat; brain; listeriosis

MeSH Terms

Animals
Brain/cytology/*enzymology
Glial Fibrillary Acidic Protein/analysis
Goat Diseases/*enzymology
Goats
Immunohistochemistry
Listeria Infections/enzymology/*veterinary
Neurons/*enzymology
Nitric Oxide Synthase/*analysis
Nitric Oxide Synthase Type I
Nitric Oxide Synthase Type II