Prenatal exposure to cigarette smoke enhances oxidative stress in astrocytes of neonatal rat

Oxidative stress is involved in the pathogenesis of smoking-related disease. Protection of astrocytes from oxidative insult appears essential to maintain brain function. In this study, we have investigated the effect of gestational cigarette exposure on astrocyte survival. Pregnant female were randomly allocated to the control group or to the cigarette smoke group in which they were placed in an exposure chamber and inhale three cigarettes smoke twice a day for a period of 20 days. The control group was kept in the exposure chamber for the same duration, but without exposure to cigarette smoke. Newborn rats from both groups were weighed 24 h after birth and then cerebral hemispheres were collected for astrocyte culture. Incubation of astrocytes isolated from animals exposed to cigarette smoke with 300 mM H2O2 for 1 h induced a significant decrease of the proportion of surviving cells compared to cells isolated form control animals. We have observed that H2O2-treated astroglial cells derived from cigarette smoke exposure showed more reduced superoxide dismutase and catalase activities than H2O2- treated astroglial cells from control animals. In conclusion, this study indicates that astroglial cells derived from newborn rats exposed in utero to cigarette smoke are more vulnerable to oxidative assault than cultured astrocytes obtained from control animals. These results point out the existence of excitotoxic lesions in newborn exposed in utero to cigarette smoke and suggest that despite their high antioxidative activities, astrocytes cannot survive and protect neurons under massive oxidative stress.