Inhalation exposure to white spirit causes region-dependent alterations inthe levels of glial fibrillary acidic protein

Enhanced expression of glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) is known to b e associated with toxicant-induced gliosis, a homotypic response of the cen tral nervous system to neural injury. A variety of neurochemical and neurop hysiological effects have been observed in experimental animals exposed to white spirit, but a linkage of such effects to neural damage has not been e stablished. Here we evaluated the regional levels of GFAP to assess potenti al sites of CNS damage in the rat, following exposure to dearomatized and a romatic white spirit. Samples from rats exposed to dearomatized white spiri t were assayed for GFAP levels in the United States and Denmark. The result s were remarkably similar between countries, Small region-dependent increas es and decreases in GFAP were observed with the cerebellum showing the most consistent effects (increases). in contrast, samples from rats exposed to aromatic white spirit showed large (as much as 150% of control) increases i n regional levers of GFAP; again, the cerebellum showed the most consistent effects. The data are indicative of an aromatic white-spirit-induced astro gliosis in several regions of the rat CNS and suggest that chronic exposure to this solvent may be associated with underlying neural damage. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science Inc. All rights reserved.