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Cranial radiation therapy for the treatment of pediatric brain tumors results in changes to brain development that are detectable with magnetic resonance imaging. We have previously demonstrated similar structural changes in both humans and mice. The goal of the current study was to examine the role of inflammation in this response. Because neuroanatomic volume deficits in pediatric survivors are more pronounced in female patients, we also evaluated possible dependence on sex.

Other studies have shown that male mice deficient in the C-C chemokine ligand 2 gene (Ccl2; previously Mcp-1) have a muted neuroinflammatory response after irradiation. We irradiated Ccl2^-/- (HOM; female = 12, male = 13), Ccl2^–/+ (HET; female = 13, male = 16), and Ccl2^+/+ (WT; female = 11, male = 13) mice with a whole brain dose of 7 Gy during infancy. Control mice (with …