Diurnal Differences in Immune Response in Brain, Blood and Spleen After Focal Cerebral Ischemia in Mice.

BACKGROUND: The immune response to acute cerebral ischemia is a major factor in stroke pathobiology. Circadian biology modulates some aspects of immune response. The goal of this study is to compare key parameters of immune response during the active/awake phase versus inactive/sleep phase in a mouse model of transient focal cerebral ischemia. METHODS: Mice were housed in normal or reversed light cycle rooms for 3 weeks, and then they were blindly subjected to transient focal cerebral ischemia. Flow cytometry was used to examine immune responses in blood, spleen, and brain at 3 days after ischemic onset. RESULTS: In blood, there were higher levels of circulating T cells in mice subjected to focal ischemia during zeitgeber time (ZT)1-3 (inactive or sleep phase) versus ZT13-15 mice (active or awake phase). In the spleen, organ weight and immune cell numbers were lower in ZT1-3 versus ZT13-15 mice. Consistent with these results, there was an increased infiltration of activated T cells into brain at ZT1-3 compared with ZT13-15. CONCLUSIONS: This proof-of-concept study indicates that there are significant diurnal effects on the immune response after focal cerebral ischemia in mice. Hence, therapeutic strategies focused on immune targets should be reassessed to account for the effects of diurnal rhythms and circadian biology in nocturnal rodent models of stroke.