Whole body hyperthermia selectively induces heat shock protein 72 in neurons of the rat spinal cord

The aims of this study were to examine whether the heat shock response is o perative in the spinal cord, and to identify the type of responsible cell. Immunoblot analysis using an antibody specific for a highly stress-inducibl e heat shock protein with a molecular mass of 72 kDa (HSP72) showed that ex posing rats to whole body hyperthermia remarkably induced HSP72 protein in the spinal cord within 2 h. Northern blot analysis with a cDNA probe for hu man HSP72 demonstrated that whole body hyperthermia induced the expression of HSP72 mRNA within 30 min in the spinal cord. Immunohistochemical analysi s showed that neurons in the gray matter appear to be a preferential target of the heat shock response, suggesting that the heat shock response might have a therapeutic implication for protection against spinal cord injury. ( C) 1998 Elsevier Science Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.