Immunocytochemical expression of the blood-brain barrier glucose transporter (GLUT-1) in neural transplants and brain wounds

Abstract

The present study examined the immunocytochemical expression of the blood-brain barrier glucose transporter (GLUT-1) in a series of fetal neocortical transplants, autonomic tissue transplants, and stab wounds to the rat brain. GLUT-1 is one of a family of different glucose transporters and is found exclusively on barrier-type endothelial cells. In the brain it is responsible for the regulated facilitative diffusion of glucose across the blood-brain barrier. This investigation is the first to determine if this important molecule is altered during the process of angiogenesis that occurs following neural transplantation procedures or direct brain injury. Beginning in late fetal brain, e.g., E18 and continuing into maturity, GLUT-1 was strongly and exclusively expressed on normal cerebral vessels. In solid fetal central nervous system (CNS) transplants up to around 3 weeks postoperative, GLUT-1 was only weakly expressed, particularly as exemplified by colloidal gold immunostaining when compared with the host. At later times examined, up to 15 months postoperative, GLUT-1 immunoexpression was comparable with the normal adjacent brain. In autonomic tissue transplants, where the vessels do not have a blood-brain barrier, as expected, GLUT-1 was not expressed. In stab wounds, at 1 week there was extensive gliosis, and the injured vessels appeared fragmented and collapsed but still expressed GLUT-1, although to a somewhat lesser extent than normal brain. Between 3 and 6 weeks, GLUT-1 was expressed on tortuous vessels and in apparently fibrillar processes in the wound vicinity with a similar pattern to astrocyte (GFAP) reactivity. These results suggest the occurrence of a down-regulation of GLUT-1 in early transplants, perhaps related to reduced glycolytic activity or transient ischemia, or possibly due to the utilization of alternative energy sources. That GLUT-1 expression was not entirely lost in stab wounds to the mature brain suggests that the protein may be more labile in fetal or perinatal brain than in the adult and may not be affected by direct injury. Coupled with previous transplantation studies that have shown reduced neuronal glycolysis and potential barrier alterations, the reduction of GLUT-1 activity within nearly the identical time frame could indicate a relatively early critical period in cellular metabolism following transplantation of CNS tissue.