Enhanced Expression of Glutathione S-Transferase in the Hippocampus Following Acute Treatment With Trimethyltin In Vivo

We investigated the effects of treatment with trimethyltin (TMT) on the expression of glutathione-related enzymes in mouse hippocampus. TMT promoted the expression of glutathione S-transferase (GST) Ya/Yc mRNA, and GSTA2 protein, but not that of glutamate-cysteine ligase catalytic subunit mRNA, 1 day after injection. TMT produced a slight but significant elevation of GST activity during the period from day 1 to 7 post-treatment. No significant change was seen in the activity of glutathione peroxidase at anytime post-TMT treatment. Our data suggest the prolonged elevation of GST activity in the hippocampus following TMT treatment through enhanced expression of the GST Ya/Yc. The organotin trimethyltin chloride (TMT) selectively produces neuronal damage in both human and rodent central nervous systems (1). In adult mice, the damage occurs exclusively in the granule neurons of the dentate gyrus (2). Further studies have demonstrated that TMT produces neuronal injury in the olfactory system including the olfactory bulb, anterior olfactory nucleus, and frontal cerebral cortex (3, 4).