Nerve agent exposure and physiological stress alter brain microstructure and immune profiles after inflammatory challenge in a long-term rat model of Gulf War Illness.

ABSTRACT: Gulf War Illness (GWI) is a disorder experienced by many veterans of the 1991 Gulf War, with symptoms including fatigue, chronic pain, respiratory and memory problems. Exposure to toxic chemicals during the war, such as oil well fire smoke, pesticides, physiological stress, and nerve agents, is thought to have triggered abnormal neuroinflammatory responses that contribute to GWI. Previous studies have examined the acute effects of combined physiological stress and chemical exposures using GWI rodent models and presented findings related to neuroinflammation and changes in diffusion magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) measures, suggesting a neuroimmune basis for GWI. In the current study, using ex vivo MRI, cytokine mRNA expression, and immunohistological analyses of brain tissues, we e

SUBMITTER: Cheng CH 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11489046 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature