A model to induce low temperature trauma for in vitro astrogliosis study

Astrogliosis is an inevitable and rapid response of astrocytes to physical, chemical and pathological injuries. To study astrogliosis, we developed a reproducible in vitro model in which low temperature injury to cultured astrocytes could be induced by placing the culture dish onto a copper pipe pre-cooled by liquid nitrogen. Using this model, the relationship between the temperature decline and the severity of cellular damage was analyzed. An increase in the expression of some known injury-related proteins, such as glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP), immediate early response genes (IEGs), and heat shock proteins 70 (HSP70), was demonstrated in astrocytes after low temperature trauma. With the use of this low temperature trauma model, the flexibility in the temperature control and injury area may allow researchers to evaluate cryotherapy and cryosurgery, which could be applicable to future development of quality health care.