The effect of diesel exhaust exposure on blood-brain barrier integrity and function in a murine model

Abstract

Epidemiological studies indicate that exposure to diesel exhaust (DE) is associated with vascular-based disorders. To investigate the effect of DE on blood-brain barrier (BBB) function and integrity, 8-week-old BALB/c mice were randomized to DE in a cyclical treatment regimen over a 2-week period. Functional integrity of BBB was determined by considering brain parenchymal abundance of IgG within the hippocampal formation and cortex at 6h and 24h intervals following final exposure treatment. Neurovascular inflammation was expressed as the abundance of glial fibrillar acidic protein. Two doses of DE were studied and compared to air-only treated mice. Mice exposed to DE had substantially greater abundance of parenchymal IgG compared to control mice not exposed to DE. Increased parenchymal glial fibrillar acidic protein at 24h post-DE exposure suggested heightened neurovascular inflammation. Our findings are proof-of-concept that inhalation of DE can compromise BBB function and support the broader contention that DE exposure may contribute to neurovascular disease risk.