Background: Cisplatin causes the impairment of inner ear functions, including hearing and balance, through the involvement of a number of mechanisms. However, no laboratory studies have been performed on involvement of inflammation-related events in cisplatin-mediated vestibular dysfunction.
Methods: We evaluated the secretion of proinflammatory cytokines and nuclear factor-kappaB (NF-kappaB) activation in cisplatin-treated UB/UE-1 utricular epithelial cells. We also employed immunohistochemistry to detect proinflammatory cytokines and NF-kappaB expression in cisplatin-injected mice.
Results: Productions of proinflammatory cytokines significantly caused the death of UB/UE1 cells by cisplatin. Pharmacologic inhibition of mitogen-activated protein (MAP) kinase/ERK kinase-1 (MEK1) or extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) significantly attenuated the death of UB/UE1 cells caused by cisplatin and proinflammatory cytokines. Immunohistochemical studies revealed an increase in the expression of proinflammatory cytokines and NF-kappaB in both the cristae ampullae and utricle of cisplatin-injected mice.
Conclusions: These results suggest that proinflammatory cytokines may play an important role in the pathogenesis of cisplatin-mediated vestibulo-toxicity.
(c) 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Head Neck, 2008.