Abstract

Children are highly vulnerable to the neurotoxic effects of organophosphates (OP), which can cause neuronal developmental defects, including intellectual disability, autism, epilepsy, and related comorbidities. Unfortunately, no specific pediatric OP neurotoxicity model currently exists. In this study, we developed and characterized a pediatric rat model of status epilepticus (SE) induced by the OP diisopropylfluorophosphate (DFP) and examined its impact on long-term neurological outcomes. Postnatal day 21rats were exposed to a DFP regimen with standard antidotes. Progressive behavioral deteriorations were assessed over a three-month period. Development of epileptic seizures, ictal discharges, high-frequency oscillations (HFOs), and interictal spikes were monitored by video-EEG recordings. Histology-stereology analysis was performed to assess neurodegeneration, neuroinflammation, and morphological abnormalities. DFP-exposed, post-SE animals exhibited significantly elevated levels of anxiety and depression than age-matched controls at 1-, 2-, and 3-months post-exposure. DFP-exposed animals displayed aggressive behavior and a marked decline in object recognition memory, as well as prominent impairment in spatial learning and memory. DFP-exposed animals had striking electrographic abnormalities with the occurrence of displayed epileptic seizures, ictal discharges, HFOs, and interictal spikes, suggesting chronic epilepsy. Neuropathological analysis showed substantially fewer principal neurons and inhibitory interneurons with a marked increase in reactive microglia and neuroinflammation in the hippocampus and other brain regions. DFP-exposed animals also exhibited mossy fiber sprouting indicating impaired network formations. Collectively, this pediatric model displays many hallmarks of chronic sequelae reminiscent of children exposed to OPs, suggesting that it will be a valuable tool for investigating pathological mechanisms and treatment strategies to attenuate long-term OP neurotoxicity.

Significance Statement Millions of children are exposed to OPs used in agriculture or chemical incidents. This study investigated the long-term impact of neonatal exposure to the OP chemical DFP on neurobehavioral and neurodevelopmental outcomes in adulthood. DFP exposure caused long-lasting behavioral abnormalities, epileptic seizures, and bilateral brain defects with an array of neurological sequelae seen in children’s OP neurotoxicity. Thus, this model provides a novel tool to explore therapeutic interventions that mitigate long-term neurotoxic effects of children exposed to OPs and SE.