Magnetic resonance imaging as a tool to image neuroinflammation in a rat model of Parkinson's disease - phagocyte influx to the brain is promoted by bilberry-enriched diet

Neuroinflammation is a chronic event in neurodegenerative disorders. In the rat model of Parkinson's disease, including a striatal injection of the neurotoxin 6‐hydroxydopamine (6‐OHDA), antioxidant treatment affects the inflammatory process. Despite a heavy accumulation of microglia early after the injury, dopamine nerve fibre regeneration occurs. It remains unclear why this heavy accumulation of microglia is found early after the lesion in antioxidant‐treated animals, or even more, what is the origin of these microglia. In this study magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) was used to elucidate whether the inflammatory response was generated from the blood or from activated brain microglia. Superparamagnetic iron oxide (SPIO) nanoparticles were injected intravenously prior to a striatal 6‐OHDA injection to tag phagocytes in the blood. Rats were fed either with bilberry‐enriched or control diet. T2*‐weighted MRI scans were performed 1 week after the lesion, and hypointense areas were calculated from T2*‐weighted images, to monitor the presence of SPIO particles. The results revealed that feeding the animals with bilberries significantly promoted accumulation of blood‐derived immune cells. Gadolinium‐enhanced MRI demonstrated no difference in leakage of the blood–brain barrier independent of diets. To conclude, bilberry‐enriched diet promotes an influx of periphery‐derived immune cells to the brain early after injury. Superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles (SPIONs) were used to label peripheral phagocytes entering the inflamed brain in a rat model of Parkinson's disease. Infiltration of SPIO‐laden phagocytes into the brain was studied with MRI and under the influence of control or bilberry‐enriched diets. The results show that immune cell infiltration into the brain is promoted by bilberry diet.