Involvement of glucocorticoids in acute pulmonary inflammation induced by lipopolysaccharide (LPS) in malnourished rats during the gestational period at different ages

Abstract

Intrauterine nourished and undernourished rats, at 8 and 12 weeks old, will receive intranasal instillation of LPS to induce acute lung injury. To characterize the acute lung injury induced by LPS, the inflammatory cell infiltrate present in the bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) and in peribronchial regions, as well cytokines and lipid mediators production, in lung tissue, will be evaluated; to evaluate the role of glucocorticoids in this inflammatory response model, plasma levels of this hormone will be measured. Furthermore, we will also assess the gene and protein expression of glucocorticoid receptor in the hypothalamus, hippocampus and lung tissue. (AU)