Neurotoxicity of Inhalation Anesthetics in the Neonatal Rat Brain: Effects on Behavior and Neurodegeneration in the Piriform Cortex

Figure 3

Neurodegeneration in the piriform cortex following anesthetic exposure. Data represent the mean ± SEM of total dying cells in layer II of the piriform cortex in animals sacrificed 48 h and 96 h after anesthetic exposure on PD15 (numbers of animals as per Figure 2). Dying cells were initially identified in sections stained with H&E, as having a shrunken pyknotic nucleus set in an intensely eosinophilic cytoplasm. In serial eosin Y-stained sections, they also fluoresced brightly under UV light. The number of dying cells was calculated using unbiased stereological techniques, and those differing significantly from vehicle-exposed controls are indicated by an asterisk (). Representative eosin Y-stained section of the piriform cortex (layer II) is shown under UV microscopy with a fluorescing, dying cell indicated by an arrow (scale bar = 20 µM). The image is from an animal sacrificed 96 h following isoflurane exposure. Iso: isoflurane; Sevo: sevoflurane; Ureth: urethane.